


The (Ap)parent Trap

by casliyn



Category: Veep (TV)
Genre: Baby Brookheimer and Baby Egan, Cute Kids, F/M, Flashbacks?, Inspired by The Parent Trap (1961), Inspired by The Parent Trap (1998), Scheming, Tumblr Ask Box Fic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-07
Updated: 2019-04-21
Packaged: 2019-10-22 02:44:20
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 8
Words: 53,243
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17654543
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/casliyn/pseuds/casliyn
Summary: "What if we switched places...you act as me and go to New York and I'll go to California and act as you." Cassie claps her hands together."And once they realize that we're not who they think we are, they'll have to switch us back!" Amelia jumps up from the bed with excitement on her face and high in her voice."Then they'll fall in love and get married again." Cassie practically jumps up and down in the middle of the cabin.Parent Trap!AU





	1. ONE

**Author's Note:**

> I received this request a few months ago from several people and have been hard at work at perfecting it and making it seem as close to the film and as realistic as possible. 
> 
> The Parent Trap is easily one of my favorite films ever from the story to the music to score. So, it was a great joy to write this story.
> 
> With that being said, I hope you enjoy this story and take the time to leave a kudos and or comment to let me know what you think so far!

Cassie Egan was excited to attend summer camp in Maine.

 

She had always attended summer camp thanks to her Dad's absolutely hectic schedule as the Chief Executive of whatever business he ran on Wall Street but, it would be the first time she would travel on her own. 

 

Thanks to her Aunt Eva and Grandma Sally, they were able to convince him to left her to attend the five-week overnight Camp Tommy located in Bar Harbor, Maine.

 

When she had first brought the idea of the summer camp to her dad, he scrunched his nose at her and came up with every excuse underneath the sun to keep her home. 

 

"What happens if you get sick? Who'll take care of you?" he had quizzed her the night she mentioned it over the Chinese takeout dinner one day after school.

 

"I won't get sick. I have a stomach of steel not to mention in the event that I did get sick, Aunt Eva would be taking care of me as always." she had retorted.

 

And after a few more rounds of potential 'What If' scenarios, her dad had finally decided to put down the five hundred dollar deposit to sign her up for the camp.

 

When the morning of June 12th arrived, she shot like a rocket out of her bed and sprinted around her room as she grabbed her suitcases and slid on her already decided airport and first impressions outfit. 

 

Her dad had always said that first impressions were important and that it somehow had relevancy to the social ladder of society or whatever (She loved her dad but sometimes managed to zone out whenever he was going through one of his lecture phases).

 

On the way to the airport, they had laughed and joked the entire time over one of her Dad's colleagues tripping over his feet (quite literally) and falling into the coffee machine and burning his skin from the hot beverage seeping out of the machine. 

 

Whenever he wasn't working, she enjoyed times like these. 

 

Just the two of them as always, enjoying one another's company with their inside jokes and a similar sense of humor. At times though, it did get lonely. Especially whenever her friends were talking about hanging out with their mothers and such, it was tough to not feel a tad bit of jealousy run through her blood. 

 

She didn't know much or really anything about her mother.

 

From listening in on her Grandmother and Aunt speaking, she knows that her mom and dad were in a 'whirlwind' (whatever the heck that meant) relationship and it ended just as quickly as it started with the end result being her.

 

It's not like she was looking for a mother but, part of her wondered what life could've been like with her mom in her life.

 

What they would do together. What she and her dad would look like together. 

 

All she had remaining was a half a photo of her mom that she had stolen from her dad's closet.

 

Whenever her dad was out late and her Aunt was in the shower, she would sneak into her dad's room to take a few glances of the photo; imagining what the women in the photo was really like.

 

Luckily for her sake, her dad didn't know that she had the photo. Cassie had a feeling that if her dad found out she had stolen it and held onto it for the past few months he'd be livid with her. But, since she would be away from home for a few weeks, she made it a point to neatly fold the photo into her suitcase as a good luck charm.

 

"Do you have your ticket?"

 

"Yes."

 

"Do you have your wallet?"

 

"Yes"

 

"Do you have your phone?"

 

 _"Yes_ Dad, I have everything." she rolls her eyes as he adjusts his jacket. 

 

Her dad nods at that and rubs her head gently, "Just making sure I won't get a phone call in the middle of the night asking where Charlie is." he gives her a warm smile. 

 

And that makes her (almost) freak out in the airport.

 

"Dad. I left Charlie at home." her chocolate eyes go wide up at her father in realization.

 

He submerges his hand into his pocket and pulls out the familiar stuffed rabbit, "That's why I can't let you leave." she reaches up and snatches the rabbit from his hands as the chaos of JFK ensues behind them. 

 

Then it's time to board her flight. 

 

Part of her wants to stay at home and spend the comfort of summer in their comfortable Penthouse but, an even bigger part of her is ready to get on the plane and go experience things on her own.

 

"Alright, kiddo. That's you." he bends down so they're eye level (and even though she usually hates when he does that, now she loves it).

 

She takes a deep breath and adjusts the glasses on top of her head. 

 

"Are you going to miss me?" she plays with her hands nervously as he leans forward and places a kiss on the crown of her head.

 

He nods and pats her shoulder, "Like crazy. Make sure you call me the second you land so I know you're okay and you're on your way to

camp."

 

"Got it." she nods.

 

And with a quick hug, she's boarding the plane and sitting on her seat in first class.

 

As she watches the plane take off and transcend into the air, she can't help but think about her dad and hope to god (or whoever it is that is up there controlling things) that he'll be okay.

She figured her dad would be lonely by hour four.

* * *

 

Amelia Brookheimer arrived at Camp Tommy promptly thirty minutes after the supposed check-in time which aggravated her. 

 

There was nothing she hated more than being late to something, especially on the prime day of the event. According to the e-mail her mother had received, she would be in Cabin Magic and only had to deal with three other roommates versus the usual five. 

 

Nonetheless, she was ecstatic to be far from home embarking on a new experience. 

 

It was the first she had ever traveled by herself and she had even boarded the plane from California to Maine without the help of her mom but with the help of her Mom's assistant, John.

 

Once she arrived at camp, she promptly fired off a text to her mom alerting her that she had landed safe and sound to the campsite and that the cab driver wasn't suspicious by any means.

 

Even though it was only a few hours, she missed her mom like crazy. 

 

She and her mom were the definition of close; always had been and always will be. Growing up, it had always been her mom raising her all while holding down the job as one of the most prolific campaign managers in the United States. Even though they were now settled in San Fransisco, they were always on the road (Or in their case, in the air) going to their next stop for campaign events and elections. 

 

Since her mom would be busy running the Owens campaign for Senate in California, Amelia decided to look for a change in scenery for herself.

 

While yes, she enjoyed staying home with her mom and watching any and all rom-coms they could get their hands on, she wanted to do something...different with herself. 

 

She had overheard one of her mom's clients talking about Camp Tommy in Maine.

 

The woman was burbling over about the many activities the camp had to offer to the girl's who attended and how it even helped her daughter get admitted into all eight Ivy League schools and that's what let Amelia know she had to attend. It took a lot of help and persuasion to get her mother to even think about letting her attend the camp.

 

Mainly because the camp was 3,368.7 miles approximately from her front door and her mom wasn't the greatest in instilling trust into others, let alone a group of strangers in a completely different state. 

 

But, with the help of John and a few of her mom's workers, she made a well-research powerpoint presentation with bar graphs, pie charts, and statistics to help prove the benefits of her traveling on her own and attending the camp.

 

Lucky for her, her mother dutifully agreed and put down the deposit of five hundred dollars for her to attend the camp for four weeks.

 

"Alright. There are your suitcases and you have your handbag on your shoulder." John moves to fix the strap on Amelia's shoulder the minute she's out of the cab and John checks his list a few times over. 

 

"Yep." 

 

"And do you have your medication for the foods you're allergic to?" 

 

She pats her lilac suitcase and nods, "Mom made me check it at least five times last night." she sighs to herself which prompts John to give a warm smile at that. 

 

"She just worries about you, Ms. Amelia." 

 

Amelia sighs and plays with her hands, "I know, which is why you've got to make sure she isn't sitting around the house all day waiting for me to return. Owens is down in the polls and he won't rise unless she's in control 24/7." 

 

And that makes John laugh harmoniously at that, "Maybe this camp will be good for both of you-maybe you'll learn how to be a kid instead of a raging politician." 

 

Then there's a bell that sounds in the air. 

 

From her extensive research, she knows that the bell means that it's their move-in period.

 

She takes a deep breath and looks around the environment and takes in the rich smell out the outdoors; the pine trees and flickering

white light bulbs lining the exterior of the wooden buildings. 

 

"I think..you are all taken care of." John closes his black notebook and pushes it into his jacket pocket.

 

Amelia gives him an unimpressed glare and crosses her arms, "Can you give me my photo?" 

 

John's face falls into a pout as he adjusts his outfit, "I have no idea what it is you're talking about." 

 

"You know what I'm talking about John, the _photo."_ she beckons an open palm to the older man who stares down at her with a guilty look washed over his face. 

 

Against his better judgment, he plunges his hand into the pocket and produces the neatly folded photo with the rips on the side. 

 

"Your mother would kill me if she ever found out you had this."

 

She takes the photo from his hands and neatly places it into her purse pocket with a satisfied grin.

 

"It's not like she's seeking out the photo." her nose crinkles as she takes the suitcase in her hands and begins to straighten out her posture. 

 

The photo was of her dad. 

 

The man she had known as her mother's ex-lover and the handsome guy in the photo who she was assuming smiling at her mother in the other half of the picture (the other half of the photo was ripped so she only had the side with her father.). So, for all eleven years of her life, she only knew him as the guy in the photo her mother had tried to hide from her.

 

"Don't worry about your mother Ms. Millie, I'll make sure she doesn't call you more than three times a day." 

 

She nods and runs a hand through her strawberry blonde hair and sighs, "Sounds like a plan." 

 

They bid one another goodbye and within a few seconds, she finds herself all alone for the first time in her entire life. 

 

What could possibly go wrong?

* * *

 

 _"_ How'd you learn how to play poker?" Cassie's roommate, Heather questions her after she successfully beats yet another person.

 

She shuffles the cards in her hands and smirks to herself, "One of my dad's business partners taught me one night while my dad had back to back meetings on my birthday." 

 

It was her eighth birthday in fact, and unfortunately for she and her dad's plans he had triple back to back meetings the night they were supposed to be celebrating her birthday and he couldn't get out of the meeting. So, her Uncle Ben had taught her the ways of the old man's game while they waited for him to finish. 

 

"It's unfair. That's what it is." another girl (Who Cassie couldn't remember the name of for the life of her) dropped twenty-five dollars in front of her at the table.

 

She smiles to herself as she collects the money, "Hate the player, not the game." she teases in a sing-song manner. 

 

"Does anyone wish to challenge the player then?" Heather announces to the room full of girls who crowd the cabin.

 

Besides a chorus of complaints and groans, no one challenges Cassie which is enough for her to fish out her wallet from her pocket and smirk to herself as she slides the bills into the wallet's sleeve. 

 

"See?" she tosses a braid behind her back, "I'm unbeatable..being beat isn't in my DNA." 

 

"I beg to differ." a voice calls from the back of the room. 

 

The room's eyebrows bounce in surprise and suspicion at the thought of a challenge between the seemingly undefeatable Cassie Egan which somewhat aggravates the young girl. 

 

"Oh yeah? Who are you _challenger?"_ she laughs to herself. 

 

And from the crowd, emerges Amelia Brookheimer which prompts Cassie to roll her eyes. 

 

"So you've decided to ditch the political handbooks and hang out with us regular people, huh?" the girl teases Amelia who keeps her head held up high as she sits in the seat on the opposing side of Cassie.

 

"I heard that there was a challenge and that the opponent needed to learn a lesson or two." she shrugs nonchalantly. 

 

"You really think that you're smarter than everyone here, don't you?" Cassie raises an eyebrow at the girl who zips up her blue jacket.

 

"Your words not mine." 

 

Cassie scoffs at that and draws her a few cards, "Don't flatter yourself there, darling." 

 

The room bursts into infectious, girly laughter and it's Heather who breaks it.

 

"You guys must argue a lot" her head whips in between the both of them, "Even I don't argue that much with my sister." 

 

There's a brief moment when Amelia and Cassie both exchange a look and shudder in disgust. 

 

 _"Sisters?"_ Amelia's tone goes shrill, "I wouldn't want to be related to someone who wears sunglasses _indoors_ at _night._ " she gives Cassie a stern look. 

 

Cassie gives her a dismissive look, "And I wouldn't want to be related to a tightass." 

 

The room erupts into barking laughter as Amelia's face freezes into a blush. 

 

"You're quite confident for a girl who wasn't done much-how about we raise the stakes?" Amelia offers once the laughter has died down. 

 

"I'm listening." Cassie crosses her arms. 

 

"Whoever loses this round has to jump into the lake." 

 

"Fine." Cassie shrugs her shoulders nonchalantly. 

 

 _"Naked."_ Amelia challenges with an intimidating look. 

 

"Even better." Cassie bites her bottom lip and prepares herself to play.

 

In short, Cassie was a tad bit blindsided when Amelia's cards flushed her out and she was the one that had to jump butt-naked into the freezing lake. 

 

Lucky for her, this only fuels her hate for the strawberry blonde girl known as Amelia B.

 

They had only been at camp for about two weeks and in that time, the two girls had managed to make enemies out of one another.

 

Whether they would be playing in the pool, participating in the obstacle races or even just painting a picture..there was always a competition involved. 

 

It had even gotten to the point of both of the girls receiving a stern talking to from the Activites Officer by the end of the first week after they almost got into a fight after a round of tennis and Cassie called Amelia a 'Whiny bitch'.

 

Unfortunately for them, the counselors got wind of the poker games Cassie was running from her cabin and how their latest one ended with her jumping into the lake naked (From Amelia's orders). So, both girls were both sent to the Isolation Cabin as their punishment.

It didn't exactly help that the isolation cabin was practically so far away from the base camp, it could serve as its own private island for the two troubled girls. 

* * *

 

"Jesus Christ-do you just read all day?" Cassie's face scrunches as she looks over and sees Amelia perched on her bed with a large book opened on her legs. 

 

The girl adjusts her glasses, "Some of us like to continue educating ourselves; I wouldn't expect _you_ to understand." she keeps her eyes on the book avoiding Cassie. 

 

Cassie turns away from the mirror and scoffs, "No wonder you have no friends. All you do is sit around reading boring books for adults."

 

Amelia clicks her tongue as she looks up from her book to give Cassie a scowl, "Do you get off on being a raging bitch to others?" 

 

Cassie throws a braid behind her back as she inches her way to Amelia's side of the room, "And do you get off on being Little Ms. Know It All?" she crosses her arms with an eyeing glance which prompts Amelia to shrink on her bed. 

 

"God. You're so annoying." Amelia shakes her head and returns her eyes to her book. 

 

 _"Likewise."_ Cassie retorts and flips the girl her middle finger. 

 

"Similarly." Amelia follows suit and gives Cassie a flip of her middle finger. 

 

A rip of thunder rumbles through the sky; shaking their shaky cabin and sends the pinned pictures and posters on Cassie's side to fly off the walls and around the room and to ultimately land on the ground. 

 

Cassie groans and bends down the begin picking up the discarded photos from the ground. 

 

The task looks harder than it seems since the photos continue to move across the floor as the wind's speed picks up quicker and quicker. 

 

Against her better judgment, Amelia folds a dog ear in her book and goes to the window to slam it shut. 

 

"Thanks." Cassie gives a sheepish smile as she inches around on the floor peeling off the photographs from the wooden floor. 

 

"You know there's no problem in asking for help." Amelia bends down to the ground and begins to help retrieve the discarded photos from the floor. 

 

A moment of silence passes as the two girls continue to pick up the photographs and it's broken by a confused noise comes from Amelia's lips. 

 

"What's wrong with you?" Cassie's eyebrow arches at Amelia as she pauses for a brief moment. 

 

Cassie turns around with a half of a photograph in her hand and a dumbfounded look on her face, "Where did you get this photo from?"

 

 _"Home_. It's mine." Cassie states like it's obvious and snatches the photograph out of Amelia's hands. 

 

Amelia scoffs in response, "That's _my_ mom in that picture." she snatches the photo directly out of Cassie's hands defiantly, "Now how did you get this photo?" 

 

Cassie pauses at that as her face softens. 

 

"That's my mom in that picture. It's from her and my dad's wedding," she admits with her eyes down. 

 

And that's what flicks the lightbulb on in Amelia's head. 

 

She hands the photo back to Cassie and turns towards her side of the room and scrambles through the contents of her purse. 

 

"What are you doing?" Cassie follows her. 

 

Amelia produces a half an image with a rip lining the sides and holds the picture close to her heart. 

 

"Put the pictures out and next to one another on three, okay?" she instructs Cassie who gives an agreeing nod. 

 

Both girls take a deep breath and mentally prepare themselves for the next step.

 

"One...two...three." they both countdown and surge their hands to meet in the middle with the photos. 

 

The photos meet in the middle and fit perfectly. On one side, their mom has her blonde locks in a curled updo with a classic white bridal gown and on the other side, their dad has on a nicely suited tuxedo as both parents beam at one another in the now completed image. 

 

"That's my mom." Amelia beams at the photo with a bright smile.

 

"And that's my dad." the excitement runs through Cassie's voice. 

 

They look at one another and there's so much that they want to say to one another. 

 

All their lives, they've felt alone and felt as if they were missing a piece. And it's like they quite literally were after now realizing that they are in fact sisters and that they have another parent.

 

For the first time in both of their lives, they finally felt complete.


	2. The Plan

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "What if we switched places?" Cassie's eyes go wide, "You act like me and go to New York and I act like you and go to California."
> 
> Cassidy watches as Amelia's thin eyebrows arch at the idea and a look of interest washes over her features. Cassidy knew that it was a good idea, it was completely foolproof.
> 
> They were identical twins, so there wouldn't be a problem with both of them acting the part. She figures the only real work they would have is learning every single detail about one another (and oh yeah, learning how to speak just like the other). But, she figures that the last two weeks of camp would be enough time to pull it all off.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks to those of you who have been encouraging me throughout the process of this story! 
> 
> Hopefully, you enjoy this chapter!

"What's mom like?" Cassie asks one night as they laid in silence in their beds and basked in the moonlight that shined through the cabin's windows.

 

A grin breaks onto Amelia's face as she sits up in bed and brings her knees to her chest. 

 

"She's amazing." the girl gushes with a small voice, "She's strong and beautiful...and the smartest person I've ever met." 

 

Cassie smiles to herself at that and plays with the 'C' pendant on her necklace. For Cassie, she had always known that she had a mom; it was expected. How else would her father have had her unless there was a woman involved? Any other way would've been biologically wrong and simply not her father. But, to know that her mom was living and out in the world was enough to make her heart glow warmly in delight.

 

"What does she do?" Cassie inquires

 

Amelia sighs, "She's a Campaign Manager for politicians." she reveals as her head rises proudly; much like her mother's, "Helps her candidates get elected into high power positions of government."

 

Cassie (following suit), sits up in her bed, "Wait..so she's a politician?" her eyebrows arch in confusion; Cassie's dad had always said that politicians were the second coming of Satan himself (not to her directly but on the phone in one of his meetings). 

 

"Nope. Just helps them." Amelia shrugs her shoulders 

 

The conversation is all too interesting for either one of them to turn around and go back to sleep. Especially when we're learning all kinds of information over the people they had been fantasizing of meeting one day.

 

So, Cassie asks as many questions as she possibly can.

 

As well as Amelia.

 

"What about Dad?" Amelia's eyes blink to life, "What's he like? What does he do?" her body twists underneath the fluffy yellow blanket as she turns towards

Cassie; with intrigue flashing in her eyes.

 

Cassie turns to her side and flips on the light; the whole room is filled with the bright (somewhat) dim light from the old, brown lamp.

 

"Dad works on Wall Street. He's one of the Chief Executives to a business along with my Uncle Ben and Uncle Kent and Dad is funny, smart and he makes _really_ good Cheeseburgers."

 

 _"He_  cooks? _"_ Amelia repeats in confusion.

  

Cassie tucks a strand of her strawberry blonde hair behind her ear, "When he can." she shrugs, "If he's not cooking then either my Aunt Eva or Grandma Sally makes something for me."

 

Amelia takes that in and nods, she tries to imagine the guy in the photo, cooking and flipping burgers with a grin on his lips. She had stared at the photo long and hard enough for him to be a living, moving creature in her mind. It was absolutely crazy.

 

"It's just you?" she inquires.

 

"Just me." Cassie responds with her head held high, "What about you? Do you have any siblings?"

 

"Unless you count my Aunt Sophie's kids then yep, it's just me." she adjusts her body as she lies on her back; looking up at the stars through the window. "My mom hasn't even had a boyfriend in...god knows how long."

 

"Can't relate." Cassie threads her fingers through her similar strawberry blonde hair, "Dad _always_ has a new girlfriend.".

 

Amelia's eyebrows arch in intrigue at that, "He does?" she pauses for a moment trying to gather her thoughts, "Is he married or something?"

 

Cassidy laughs at that and plays with the small trinkets that rest on her nightstand. 

 

It's not like she hated her Dad because he was always 'dating' someone, it was more like she hated the women that he brought home. They were all thin, rich, somewhat pretty blonde (or in a few cases brunette) women who were always at least five years younger than him and referred to Cassie as 'Sweetie'. 

 

It drove her insane.

 

"God no." she barks in laughter at the thought of _her_ father, Dan Egan being a married man once again. "He's a commitment freak I guess. His relationships usually last a few months, give or take." 

 

Amelia looks at her in horror, "So he's insensitive to women and their feelings?"

 

"No." Cassie pauses for a moment, "He just hasn't met anyone since Mom whose right for him, that's all.". Then she looks back up again, "Not to mention he's also a tad bit selfish, but that's neither here nor there." 

 

Amelia takes that in and sighs for a minute as she looks out the window.

 

"As fun as this is, Millie. Can we continue this conversation tomorrow?" Cassie switches the light switch off as she yawns like a satisfied cat. 

 

"How can you sleep at a time like this?" Amelia flicks the light back on, "We just found out that we're sisters and you want to _sleep?"_

 

 _"Yes."_ Cassie flicks the lights back off once again, "See you in the morning." 

 

Frustration flares through Amelia's blood. Did Cassie not hear her the first time? They just found out a few hours ago that they were long lost twins and that both of their parents were alive and well and the first thing she wanted to was... _sleep?_

 

That's not how Amelia Brookheimer works. 

 

Her body is used to pulling all-nighters alongside her mom and doing every single thing she possibly could to avoid going to sleep so, sleep was the last thing she relied on.

 

Not giving up, she turns the lights back on once again and squints her eyes at her sister, "We need to talk about this now." she encourages defiantly, "There's still so much we have to learn about one another."

 

"Which we can do in the _morning."_ Cassie reaches out and switches the light back off and throws her cover over her head with an irritated huff, "Now goodnight." 

 

Against Cassie's wishes, Amelia rises from the bed and makes her way over to the desk to flip on the small light that only broadcasts the dull shine of the light on her side

 

 "Fine." Amelia throws her long locks behind her back, "I'll do all the work since you need your _rest."_

 

"Some of us need our beauty rest _."_ Cassie retorts from underneath the covers. 

 

And that's all Cassie remembers before she falls into a deep sleep dreaming of meeting her mom for the first time. 

 

* * *

 

 

When Cassidy gets an idea, she runs with it. 

 

Literally. 

 

She was in the middle of playing Tennis with one of her friends and while her opponent had taken a minute to retrieve the ball from the court when a lightbulb had exploded in her head.

 

Before she even bid the girl (Kristine? Kayla?) goodbye, she had dropped her racket to the ground and took off running towards the isolation cabin. The cabin itself was a good ten minutes away from the base camp but, with a quick sprint, she figured she could get there in about five.

 

"Amelia!" she bursts through the screen door practically bouncing in her tennis shoes; startling Amelia from her book.

 

She holds onto her chest as she releases a tiny shriek of surprise. Her chest heaves up and down as she adjusts her outfit and sighs with irritation directed towards her sister, "Jesus Christ!" she sits upright from her bed, "You scared the living crap out of me." she protests as Cassie locates a bottle of water and chugs it.

 

"That was my water." Amelia's voice goes stern as Cassie throws it into the wastebasket without hesitation. Rolling her eyes, Cassie waves her hand and inches towards her sister's twin bed.

 

"I'll get you another one in a minute, just listen to me." 

 

Amelia's jewel-like eyes look at her sister (searching for the reasoning behind her ecstatic attitude) and back down at the book that rests in her lap (she had stolen her mom's copy of Anna Karena and couldn't put it down for the life of her). Against her wishes, she slides in her bookmark and closes the book with a gentle slam.

 

"Enlighten me with this bright idea you have."

 

Cassie rubs her hands together as her chest rises up and down in harmony. "You have to promise me you won't get mad."

 

"Let's wait until I hear it." Amelia sarcastically replies

 

Cassidy crosses her arms and pouts, _"Amelia."_

 

"Sorry." the girl releases a dramatic sigh and props herself up against the pillows on her bed.

 

"You want to meet Dad and I want to meet Mom, right?" 

 

Amelia nods.

 

"What if we switched places?" Cassie's eyes go wide, "You act like me and go to New York and I act like you and go to California."

 

Cassidy watches as Amelia's thin eyebrows arch at the idea and a look of interest washes over her features. Cassidy knew that it was a good idea, it was completely foolproof.

 

They were identical twins, so there wouldn't be a problem with both of them acting the part. She figures the only real work they would have is learning every single detail about one another (and oh yeah, learning how to speak just like the other). But, she figures that the last two weeks of camp would be enough time to pull it all off. 

 

She grounds her feet onto the cheap wool carpeting as she watches Amelia in anticipation.

 

The plan didn't seem as bad as Amelia had expected though. It's just that with her train of thought..she always thought of the worst possible outcome, and from the way Cassie bites her lip in excitement, she can tell that she hadn't even counted the alternatives in which the plan falls right onto its face.

 

"That's crazy, Cassie." Amelia hangs her legs off the side of her bed, "Do you realize how pissed off each of our parents would be if they found out we were on opposing sides of the country-Mom would be _livid_ with me.".

 

"That we can-"

 

"And you don't know this about Mom yet, but when she gets mad, it's frightening. Her eyes go big, she swears a million miles a minute and her body starts shaking like she's literally about to explode." 

 

Cassie pauses at that for a moment and smirks; that sounds exactly like her Dad whenever he gets pissed.

 

"Amelia, please." Cassidy trails after the girl when she stands from the bed and makes her way over to the wooden vanity set, "I've never met Mom and you've never met Dad." 

 

"I know."

 

"Then that's all the more reason for us to do it." Cassidy throws her hands in the air, "Weren't you saying how lonely Mom is?"

 

A look of guilt washes over Amelia's face as her shoulders cave in and she begins to slouch.

 

"She is..but by _choice."_ she protests with a meek voice. 

 

"Again, all the more reason for us to do it." Cassie turns Amelia to face the mirror, "Look. I want to meet Mom, okay? This may be the only chance to do it." 

 

Amelia pauses for a moment as she looks for the differences between her and her sister. 

 

It's not like there was that much of a difference between them. Besides their voices and attitudes, they could easily pass as one another to anybody and maybe...this plan isn't all that terrible.

 

"So, what do you say?"

 

Amelia sighs and crosses her arms, "You may have actually come up with a not so bad idea." she admits with a small voice.

 

A look of glee flashes on Cassidy's face as her jaw drops and she begins to shake Amelia's arms excitedly, "You'll do it?"

 

"Yeah..I'll do it."

 

"Great! I'll grab the scissors!" Cassidy bounces over to her suitcase.

 

Amelia pauses and whips her head in confusion, " _Scissors?"_ she screeches in horror, "I'm not letting an eleven-year-old cut my hair."

 

"Fine, we'll start off easy then." Cassie rolls her eyes and drops her scissors back in her suitcase.

 

* * *

 

"Cassidy put the scissors _down."_ Amelia's shoulders tense up as she watches Cassidy begins to line up various beauty tools on the vanity.

 

Cassidy smirks as she plays with the red scissors in her hands, "It's _hair,_ it'll grow back." 

 

"But it's my hair." Amelia covers her chest with her hands, "I like my hair long and I'd very much so like to keep it long." 

 

Cassie puts a hand over Amelia's mouth and bends down so their eye-level against Amelia's will.

 

"You wanted to meet Dad right?"

 

Amelia nods.

 

"And how many weeks have I given you to mentally prepare to get your hair cut?"

 

Amelia rolls her eyes as she mumbles against her sister's hand and holds up two fingers with her free hand. 

 

"Exactly. Two weeks. And tomorrow we leave so no more postponing this because of your weird relationship with your hair, okay?" 

 

Cassie removes her hand from Amelia's face as the girl releases a dramatic sigh and shuts her eyes.

 

"Fine. Just don't do a terrible job alright?" 

 

Cassie circles the chair and runs a hand through Amelia's strawberry blonde locks, "Thanks for the words of encouragement." she picks up the comb from the table and begins to comb through Amelia's perfectly polished long locks. 

 

A moment of silence falls through the cabin as Cassie inches the scissors towards the lock of hair tangled in her fingers.

 

"What side of the house is my room on?" Cassie questions as she cuts a small portion of hair. 

 

Amelia's body tenses up, _"What?"_ her head turns backward but Cassidy stops her with a cautious movement; careful of her not being stabbed in the neck with the scissors close to her neck. 

 

"What side of the house is my room on?" Cassie repeats herself slowly, "You're going home tomorrow and you can't walk around like an idiot in your _own_ house." 

 

"It's on the _left_ side of the house, overlooking the view of Westchester," Amelia responds in a rehearsed, cautious tone. 

 

"What side of the house is my room on then?" Amelia challenges as she feels the comb makes its way through her hair. 

 

"It's on the right side of the house, right next to the coat closet upstairs and down the hall from Mom's main office." 

 

Amelia pauses for a moment with an impressed look on her face. For the past few weeks, the two were hard at work on learning every single detail about one another's life. They had spent all day and (often) all night, teaching one another who each member of their immediate family was (through pictures of course), presenting exquisite, detailed diagrams of each other's homes and most importantly learning one another's voice patterns.

 

"How do you know when Dad is in a bad mood?" 

 

Amelia strokes her chin, "His eyes go big, he paces back and forth, and he swears." she answers

 

"What about mom?"

 

Cassidy smirks to herself as she cuts another strand of hair, "The same thing..but she also gets quiet." 

 

It only takes a few more cuts here and there for Cassie to finish up Amelia's hair and when she steps away to admire her hard work, she's quite impressed with her work.

 

She turns Amelia to face the mirror and smirks when she sees the look of pure awe on her face. 

 

"See? I told you that I know what I'm doing." Cassidy crosses her arms.

 

Shocked, Amelia stands from the chair and runs a hand through her now identical hairstyle to Cassie's with slow, cautious fingers. 

 

"How'd you do this?" 

 

Cassie smirks, "A true stylist  _never_ reveals her tricks." she tosses her hair behind her back, "You're lucky that your twin has awesome style."

 

Amelia reels back for a minute, "Are you insulting my style?" she perfectly imitates Cassidy's voice. 

 

"Hey! You sound just like me." she nods with an approving smile. 

 

"I do, don't I?" Amelia smirks to herself as Cassidy leans forward to take a good look at their eerily similar reflections in the mirror. 

 

If it hadn't been for their different outfits, Cassidy would easily confuse the two for one another and pat herself on the back for such a job well done. But, the closer she looks, the more a small, noticeable difference comes into play.

 

"Oh no."

 

A frown paints on Amelia's soft features.

 

"What?" 

 

Cassie chews on her bottom lip and turns towards her sister with an awkward smile, "I have pierced ears...and you _don't"_

 

 _"No."_ Amelia's head shakes furiously, "Absolutely not, Cass. Do you know how dangerous that is?" she shrieks in panic. 

 

Cassie holds her hands up in the air, "Well then me cutting your hair was a complete and utter waste of our time." she flips Amelia's hair.

 

"Why would I go to camp with pierced ears and go back home without them pierced. Get real." she gives her sister a knowing look. 

 

Amelia chews on her bottom lip and sighs; looking at her reflection in the mirror with heavy eyes. 

 

"It won't be that bad, I promise." Cassie uses a caring tone to comfort her sister, "I'll get ice, and you can hold my teddy bear and..it won't be that bad, I _promise."_

 

"You promise?" Amelia rubs a hand up and down her arm nervously. 

 

_No._

 

"Sure, I mean..yes, I promise." 

 

* * *

 

 

It was a crisp, summer day the morning of Departure Day at camp. 

 

All of the girls of the camp were bidding one another farewell in front of the buses.

 

"You have your boarding ticket and everything?" Amelia asks as she plays with her jean jacket. 

 

Cassie nods and twists her hand to show the boarding pass nestled in her palm along Amelia's travel wallet. 

 

"I have everything. Do you have yours?"

 

Amelia nods and touches her backpack, "I've got everything, don't worry." 

 

The two twins take a look at one another and smile at the results. 

 

Amelia wears Cassidy's black shorts, purple long-sleeved blouse and black jean jacket with her signature black ray bans rested upon her head. While Cassidy wears Amelia's pink skirt and cream white sweater (Completed with the signature Amelia Egan bow wrapped around her ponytail). 

 

"Remember, John is going to pick you up from the airport. He'll be waiting for you outside of the gate so keep your eyes opened for him." Amelia reminds her sister. 

 

"And Dad's taking the day off today to pick you up so after you leave the gate, go to baggage claim get the suitcase and meet Dad at the main lobby. It's JFK so remember that it'll be crazy."

 

Amelia takes that in with a nod and sighs. 

 

"Text me the minute you're home, okay?" 

 

Cassie nods and pulls her sister in for a long hug. 

 

As they hug, there's a sense of contentment and excitement running through the girl's blood. After the whirlwind of camp, they were now embarking on a new trip to do something they've never met before. 

 

Meet their other parent.

 

"Amelia Egan! Your cab is here." a voice rings through the megaphone.

 

The girls pull apart and Cassidy takes a deep breath.

 

"Alright." Amelia smiles, "That's you." she squeezes her sister's hand. "Make sure to give Mom a hug and kiss for me." 

 

"Of course." Cassidy bends down to grab the suitcase. 

 

She gives Amelia one last wave and walks to the cab with her head held high and her chin up even higher. 

 

For the next few weeks, she was Amelia Egan as far as anyone was concerned. 

 

And she was ready to meet her mom.

 

* * *

 

 

The minute Amelia lands in New York, she's a bundle of nerves. 

 

Sure, she had physically prepared for taking on the role of Cassie Egan. But, for her to actually be in Cassie's clothes, in her hometown..acting as her was a tad bit more overwhelming than she thought it would be. 

 

It's not like the traveling part was nervewracking to her by any means; she's been on the road all over the country for the sole purpose of elections alongside her mother. 

 

It was the fact that she would be coming face to face with the man she had been dreaming of meeting for the past eleven years. 

 

She took in the area of the fast-paced JFK Airport as she made her way through the baggage claim in search of her suitcase.

 

As she waited for her bag to make its way around the metal machine, she pulled out her phone and quickly sent off a text to Cassie, letting her know that she made it safe and sound to the airport and was currently waiting for her bag (and to make sure to wear her ballet-pink house slippers so her mom wouldn't get suspicious). 

 

She watched as various people were reunited with their loved ones and smiled to herself. The way that their faces broke out into an undeniable smile made her heart warm with delight. 

 

It reminded her of the beginning of 'Love Actually' the way the narrator discloses the joy it brings him to watch loved ones being reunited at the Heathrow Airport; she understood the joy completely. 

 

She notices a red-haired woman shriek when she notices a blonde man standing behind a pillar and runs towards him with concerning speed. 

 

Ah, to be in love. 

 

She wonders if her parents had ever been that type of couple. The kind who showed PDA in public places and made everyone else silently wish that they were in a relationship of their own. 

 

It's hard to imagine her mother as someone who would leap at the opportunity of showing affection with someone in public.

 

"What's this? You got to summer camp for a few weeks and come back as a businesswoman?"

 

Her head whips up and she sees him. 

 

Her heart skips a beat and she feels her whole body go frozen. 

 

The man she had been staring at for the past eleven years was finally in front of her.

 

"Dad..it's you," she says not recognizing her voice. 

 

"I told you I'd-"

 

She all but forgets her luggage as she runs into his arms for a grand hug. 

 

It was this moment she had been fantasizing forever, and it couldn't have been more perfect. The way he rubs her back in small circles and kisses the crown of her head makes her feel...at home in a way. 

 

It's like she's known him her whole life.

 

"Wow, you really missed me huh?" he gives her a smile when she pulls away from the hug to give him a good look. 

 

She nods her head and sighs, "More than you'll ever know."

 

He pats her head as he takes her suitcase in his hand, "No more trips for you then, Ms. Summer Camp." he teases her as they make their way out of the airport and into the somewhat humid New York day. 

 

"There's something different about you, Cass." he frowns at her. 

 

Crap. 

 

"Well, it's been almost a month since I've seen you, Dad. _Anything_ could've happened." she teases and silently scolds herself for that sly little comment about change.

 

Luckily he laughs at that and they make their way across the crosswalk, "I guess your right then, Cass." 

 

He was exactly as Cassie had described; tall, handsome and suave. It wasn't often she saw a man with such great dressing techniques as his. 

 

Part of her could get an idea as to how her mom had fallen for him all those years ago, she knew her mom was a sucker for a man who was well dressed. 

 

It's not until they've gotten settled in the car when she's snapped back into the world of Cassidy Egan. 

 

"What's gotten you in such a good mood?" his eyebrow arches at her.

 

She bites her bottom lip and sighs; trying to find the words.

 

"I'm just really happy to be home." 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Make sure to leave a comment and or kudos! Feedback is greatly appreciated and heavily encouraged!


	3. Nine-One-One

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Well, he's been sleeping but not with the office." she hears Eva mumble underneath her breath and that causes her ears to perk up like a dog. 
> 
> She always paid attention to the subtle things that most people usually ignored, that's where you find the answers, within the ignored information. 
> 
> So, Dad was sleeping with someone? What was the big deal with that? Wasn't Dad like..notorious for that kind of stuff. (At least, according to Amelia he was).

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The support I've received on this story has been simply amazing! Thanks to those of you who have been so passionate and loving of this story, it's such a rewarding feeling as a writer to know that my work is causing joy in other people's lives!
> 
> This chapter is dedicated to @irenesides. Thank you so, so, so much for being such an amazing friend and confidant. You and Ruby have both been such an amazing support system for my stories and I, and I'm so grateful for you and your undivided support!

The minute she lands in San Fransisco, a surge of excitement sprints through her blood. 

 

Despite her father's claims, she had always wanted to visit and tour the famed city. In the back of her brain the entire flight, she had heard on repeat the countless claims her father had muttered against the Golden city under his breath and passing over the years. 

 

"Town of hippies blowing one another in the back of their Volkswagens." might stand the test of the time as one of her favorite Dan Egan insults. 

 

She decided to push her father's thoughts to the back of her mind (Along with other things) to actually enjoy and experience the city for herself. Since her dad was always so weird about the town, they never got a chance to actually visit the city and wanted to see what the Bay Area had to offer her.

 

The minute she grabs her bag overhead and is escorted off the plan, she sees a thin man standing amongst the other adults with a teddy bear in one hand and bouquet of flowers in the other.

 

And from the sharp way he's dressed and the warm smile that paints on his face when they lock eyes...she knows that she's found, John. 

 

"There she is. The lady of the hour." he beams down at her as she approaches him with a bright smile.

 

 _"John."_ she replies in her strikingly accurate Amelia Brookheimer tone, "I've missed you so much!" she gushes as he pulls her body in for an affectionate hug. 

 

"Likewise Ms. Amelia!" he rubs her back in small circles, the smile on his face is warm and inviting until he pulls away to get a good luck at her.

 

To which his brow furrows in confusion at her, "Amelia, what happened to your hair?" his fingers strum through Cassidy's glossy bob. She takes a deep breath and steadies herself.

 

"Well, they had a donation drive for an orphanage in.. _.Puerto Rico_ for the orphans..with no..hair." she gives him a nod that indicates she's nothing but sure of herself and the (apparent) decision to cut her infamous strawberry blonde locks. 

 

John ponders for a minute and takes the suitcase from Cassidy's hands, "You've always have had such a noble heart-I'm certain your mother will be proud of your act of service." he gives her an encouraging smile to which Cassie mirrors with her version of her own. 

 

They make their way through the crowded airport hand in hand and instead of focusing on what it is John is mentioning to her, she's looking at all of the gift shops and stores in intrigue.

 

 _"Amelia."_ Cassie hears and she's snapped back into the reality of Amelia Brookheimer. 

 

"Yes, John." she's at alert and pauses as the older gentleman stops in his tracks.

 

"Are you hungry? Did they not feed you enough on the plane- I could've sworn your mother telling me to call the airline to-"

 

"No, no. I ate on the plane, it's just that....has this store always been here?" she points a finger at the Boudin Bakery storefront as she practically feels herself salivating over the smell of the clam chowder and freshly baked Sourdough bread. 

 

John raises an eyebrow at her, "It _has."_ he takes the time to adjust his thick-framed glasses, "Remember, your mother orders the food once a week for her power lunch."

 

Crap, Amelia didn't mention that. 

 

"Oh." a look of guilt flashes on her face, "Maybe I should pick some up for her..we can share a clam chowder meal?" 

 

John pauses as he proceeds to pull out his wallet, "Since when have you liked clam chowder? I thought it repulsed you." 

 

Again, Amelia forgot to mention _that_ little factoid to her. 

 

Thinking fast, she runs a hand through her hair. "That's because it did...but now..I like it." she feigns, "I guess I just got wind of a bad batch or two in the past." she begins to ramble in classic Amelia Brookheimer style much to John's confusion. 

 

Luckily for her, John goes along with it and decides to purchase two bowls of steaming Clam Chowder served in Sourdough bowls for her and her mother. 

 

Now, she just had to text Amelia to see whatever factoids she left out about herself before Cassidy ended up eating something she was allergic to. 

 

* * *

She's used to the hustle and bustle of New York.

 

The slow-moving traffic, fast-moving pedestrians and...the all-around buzz of the city. Even though she's used to it, it's a relatively nice feeling when John pulls up to the modern townhome that resides on top of the hill overlooking the city.

 

The pictures Amelia had shown her wasn't enough to do the beautiful cream white exterior townhome justice. 

 

It was like a Barbie homemade for the American business woman-and that's a lifestyle that seemed awesome to Cassie. 

 

"Your mother was so anxious for you to arrive that she even took the day off and decided to work from home to wait for your arrival." John carries the suitcase in one hand as Cassidy holds the Boudin Bakery bags in her hands. 

 

"Really?" her eyes widen in surprise, "Are Grandpa and Grandma here too?" she tries

 

John shakes his head as he twists the door open, "No, they had to go back home and take care of Sophie and those gremlins known as your cousins." he laughs to himself.

 

Crap, did she like her cousins? Wasn't there one that she was supposed to like-Amber? Or was it Jade? Or maybe Victoria?

 

The minute she steps into pass the threshold, it's like she's transported into a dream. From the neatly painted teal walls to the pristine and black furniture, it's everything she thought it would be and more. It also helps that the entire atmosphere smells of warm vanilla and fresh cherry blossoms.

 

"Where's Mom?" she turns to John as she hands him the bakery bag and he places her bags on the floor outside of the kitchen. 

 

He gives her a funny look, "Where she lives." he states like it's obvious, "You know, the place where she eats, breathes, lives...and sometimes sleeps."

 

She snaps her fingers, "Her office!" it all clicks in her head and starts to make a tad bit more sense, "Thank you, John." she excuses herself and makes her way up the wooden staircase.

 

As she makes her way up the staircase, her eyes glaze over the various photographs of who she assumes to be her (Well, Amelia and her mom) over the years. Part of her wonders if it was Mom who put up the photos, only because of Amelia's descriptions...Mom didn't seem like such a creative force.

 

The minute she's off the stairs it's like she's at home. 

 

She had studied Amelia's diagram so hard that it was practically inscribed in the back of her mind at all times.

 

She sees the coat closet, the door with a crystal 'A' ornament hanging off the handle (Obviously Amelia's room) and the double doors leading to the main office. 

 

Without thinking, she makes her way over to the office door and twists open the doorknob to reveal the modernly decorated yet extremely messy home office with a blonde woman barking orders into her phone from behind her desk with her back facing her. 

 

It's her mom. 

 

 _That's_ her mom.

 

"Well make it happen. I already told you I'm not coming in because Amelia's coming back today and I'll be damned if I let some middle-aged crybaby get in between my daughter and me." 

 

Wow, this really is her mom. 

 

It seems like the person on the opposite line does what they're told because she hangs up the phone with a satisfied grin and turns her chair back forward and the look on her face when she sees Cassidy (Well, Amelia) is priceless.

 

"Amelia." she smiles brightly, "You're back." she stands from the desk with open arms and crosses over to Cassidy who nods enthusiastically.

 

When Cassidy's in her mother's arms it's like everything feels right. She could quite literally die at that exact moment and feel all of the satisfaction in the whole world from this moment alone. 

 

She squeezes her mother just a bit tighter and guarantees that she is in fact as real as she can be and it makes her even happier.

 

Her mother laughs as she pulls away, "I missed you so much, Millie." 

 

"I missed you too, Mom," Cassie responds on the verge of tears.

 

Then a frown falls upon her mother's face as her hands find it's way through Cassidy's strawberry blonde hair.

 

"Why is your hair so short? Did someone cut your hair?" her eyes flash with panic.

 

"No, no." she holds her hands up defensively, "They had a donation line for Puerto Rican children in need of hair and I figured..it would look great on my college applications."

 

The smile her mother gives her is enough to make the nervous feelings go away for a brief second. "Well that's fine, I guess." she sighs and fixes her yoga pants and college sweater. 

 

"Are you mad?"

 

Her mother ponders for a minute, "Surprised yes, mad no." 

 

See? She knew her Mom wouldn't be pissed over it. She would have to remember to send Amelia an 'I told you so.' text a little later after she was all settled in for the night. 

 

"Are you happy to be home, though?"

 

Cassidy takes a deep breath and nods, "More than you'll ever know, Mom."

 

* * *

 

"There she is!" a woman beams brightly at Amelia as she and her dad enter the main foyer of the penthouse.

 

From the dark auburn hair softening her face to the apparel of red flannel and jeans; she can tell it's her Aunt Eva. 

 

According to Cassie, there's no relation between the two but, apparently, she's been taking care of Cassidy as long as she could remember so..she was basically like an adoptive aunt to her. 

 

Deciding it's all in character, she takes off in a light job to Eva and lets the older woman pull her in for a hug. 

 

"I've missed you." she sighs as she takes in the sweet smell of hot chocolate.

 

Eva's chest raises as she laughs harmoniously and places a kiss on the crown of her head, "I've missed you too, darling. Jesus, did you shrink overnight?" her face pulls into a confused frown as Amelia gives an awkward laugh.

 

Jesus, what was up with everyone always commenting on her height?

 

Yes, she was a tad bit small but, it didn't mean that she should be treated as such. And yes, it bothered her to some extent that Cassie was an inch and a half taller than her. 

 

"No, it's me...just regular, plain old Cass." 

 

Eva smiles at her and rubs her head, "Well I'm happy that you're back, kid." she escorts her into the main living room (Amelia had each and every room burned into the back of her brain from her intense study sessions of the photographs Cassidy had provided her).

 

They arrive in the pristine and modernly decorated living room, complete with high-end furniture and fine art pieces lining the wall in a way that only a licensed interior decorator could pull off.

 

"Cass. After you finish packing up, there's someone I want you to meet. We're going to meet them for Dinner" her dad gives her another rub on the back before he takes off up the stairs leaving her in confusion.

 

She turns to face Eva and sees the knowing look sprawling across the woman's soft features.

 

"What?" Amelia raises an eyebrow at Eva.

 

"Oh, nothing.." Eva waves a gentle hand, "It's just that..your Dad spent those eight weeks _very_ diligently." 

 

Wait, what?

 

"What's that supposed to mean?" she chuckles, "He's been sleeping in the office nonstop while I've been gone?"

 

"Well, he's been sleeping but not with the office." she hears Eva mumble underneath her breath and that causes her ears to perk up like a dog. 

 

She always paid attention to the subtle things that most people usually ignored, that's where you find the answers, within the ignored information. 

 

So, Dad was sleeping with someone? What was the big deal with that? Wasn't Dad like..notorious for that kind of stuff. (At least, according to Amelia he was).

 

"What?" Amelia feigns child-like innocence with widened eyes to Eva, "Is something wrong with Dad?" 

 

Eva takes a deep breath and takes the suitcase in her hands, "Why don't we discuss this upstairs...I made you your favorite snack of Pop Chips and Popcorn and it's waiting for your demolition in your room." 

 

"Wait, I can eat in my room?" Amelia's eyes widen in surprise; she was never allowed to eat in her room back home, it was _criminal._

 

Eva looks at her as if she's lost her mind and gives a chuckle, "Yes..I'm sure that we can make it work." she puts her hand on the small of Cassie's back and begins to escort her to the staircase, "Besides...I can give you the rundown of what's been happening around here." she whispers to Cassie which perks her up.

 

Getting to learn family secrets was always something she found interest in; at least ever since she found out that Aunt Sophie's kids all had different fathers.

 

Talk about a surprise. 

 

* * *

 

 "So, what's so important that would cause us to come here?" Amelia questions as she and her father walk into the expansive New York dining restaurant later that day.

 

Her father adjusts his blue suit jacket and brings her body in for a side-hug as their waiter leads them through the heavily populated restaurant.

 

"Well, you know that you were gone for eight weeks." he begins with a nervous look in his steely eyes.

 

"It felt like longer." she sighs with a smile directed up to him as they follow their waiter who takes a sharp right turn.

 

He gives her a smile in return and in his eyes, she can see him deciding on how he'll break the news to her. Luckily, Eva had told her what was going on with Dad though. 

 

Just as she suspected, Dad had found comfort in a new woman but apparently, this one was different than the other ones. But, according to Eva, this one was moving a lot faster than the other ones had; the woman was planning on when to move her things into the home and had taken Cassie's spot as her father's accomplice to the office.

 

"Cass." he pauses in his tracks after he gives the waiter a thumbs up.

 

She pauses her body to face him head on outside of the private room she assumes (Thanks to the metal sign reading 'Private Dining'). 

 

She blinks her eyes up at him as he takes a deep breath and grounds himself, "There's someone that I..met while you were gone and, I think it's time for you to meet them."

 

"Did you _finally_ find a new assistant?" a lightbulb clicks in her head, "It's about time..that Meghan girl was way too sensitive to get Uncle Ben's jokes." 

 

He laughs nervously at that, "No, not a new assistant." he shakes his head and twists open the door, ushering her into the brightly lit room.

 

The woman looks up from her phone with a seductive smile geared towards her Dad and it's not until she notices Amelia that her smile falls into more of a PG rating. 

 

"There you are, I was starting to get worried." she leans over the wooden table all big boobs and brunette hair,

 

Dad all but forgets Amelia's existence as he inches over the woman she the two exchange a deep kiss that lasts until Amelia's clears her throat demeaningly.

 

The two adults break contact as she inches towards the table and slides into the tall seat with her eyes on the woman.

 

"Cass, this is Victoria Rossdale." he slides into the seat at the head of the table in between the two of them, "And Victoria, this is my daughter, Cassie."

 

She takes in the woman before her from what she can see. She's a very beautiful woman, no suspicion there but, she can tell how she got there. 

 

"Hello, _Victoria."_

 

Victoria shuts off her phone and places it on the table, "Why hello, Cassidy. Your father has spoken so highly of you, I knew I just _had_ to meet you."

 

"Funny. He barely mentioned you." she retorts which prompts Dad to choke on his drink in surprise with eyes flashing panic towards Amelia.

 

 _"Cass."_ his town is slow and warning which is enough to make her a tad bit nervous.

 

Victoria leans forward to rub her Dad's shoulder, "No worries, honey. She's just got a sense of humor like you." 

 

Nose job. She definitely has gotten a nose job recently to most likely cover-up another one she got ages ago. Her brunette hair under the light seems to be dyed thanks to the ashy blonde roots peeking at the base of her hair. 

 

"When'd you two meet?" Amelia picks up the sandpaper menu and begins to check over it nonchalantly. 

 

Even though she wasn't hungry at all, she figures it would be suspicious if she didn't eat (Considering how much Cassie usually ate).

 

"The day you left for camp." Victoria speaks up, "Your father was quite sad about the whole ordeal so I offered him some company." she puts her chin in the palm of her hand. 

 

Amelia chews on the inside of her cheek, _"Interesting."_

 

From the low-cut Black and White patterned dress she is wearing, Amelia can tell that her company wasn't the only thing she was offering to Dad.

 

As the two adults busy themselves with their conversation, Amelia pulls out her phone from underneath the table and texts a quick tet to Cassie.

 

 _'911'_ she sends to her sister. She figures the message was clear enough to comprehend and understand that something major was happening.

 

The waiter arrives to come and take their orders and much to her Dad's surprise she orders a caesar salad with a side of french fries.

 

"You didn't want the clam chowder?"

 

"Ew, no," she responds out of instinct, who did he think she was? Clam Chowder absolutely repulsed her and the simple thought of it was enough for nausea to wash over her body.

 

"Cassie denying Clam Chowder? Christ, you really have changed over the summer." her Dad frowns at her as Victoria orders her food.

 

Crap, she _was_ Cassie. 

 

Was she supposed to like Clam Chowder? Cassie had never mentioned it to her during their extensive study session back at camp and now here she was looking like an idiot.

 

"It's nothing really, I'm just..not in the mood for it. I still like it though." she feigns

 

Not too long after the waiter leaves with their orders, Dad notices one of his top listed clients through the window and excuses himself for a brief minute, leaving she and Victoria alone for the first time ever.

 

"So, Cassie. You seem to be a bright little girl." 

 

"Same to you. How old are you?" 

 

Victoria sputters in surprise and pulls herself together, "I'm twenty-three." she musters out with gritted teeth, much to Amelia's satisfaction.

 

"Twenty three, huh? That's only twelve years older than me and thirteen years younger than my Dad." she plays with the straw in her water. 

 

Victoria chews on her bottom lip and tosses her hair behind her back, "I didn't know you were so interested in...Math." her shoulders tense up defensively as Amelia gives her an intense look.

 

If there was anything she learned from her mother, it was that intimidation was key in the art of confrontation. Getting your opponent to believe that you can cause any type of harm versus actually displaying it was known to have more of a hold of people.

 

"Cassandra."

 

"It's _Cassidy."_ she corrects automatically

 

Victoria gives her a sweet smile as she ignores her, "Look, I can tell there's a little anger from you towards me."

 

"Really? I can sense some jealousy." she shrugs her shoulders nonchalantly which prompts Victoria to eye the girl up and down with wondering eyes. 

 

Victoria crosses her arms and she can see the look of confusion take over her eyes as she leans back in her seat, "I'm sorry?"

 

Amelia takes a sip of her water from the straw and gives Victoria a sweet smile, "I don't blame you though. I'd be a tad bit jealous if the guy I was lusting after had a past such as his. Especially since you're number.. _forty-eight_ I think?"

 

Victoria chokes on her cocktail, "Forty-eight?" she croaks out, "As in women who've dated your father?" 

 

"Give or take," she responds with her chin the palm of her hand. 

 

"Listen, you seem quite..advanced for your age. But, you've been gone for eight weeks right?" Victoria leans over the table; her hazel eyes zeroing in on Amelia.

 

She swallows and nods in agreement.

 

"Then it's time you realize that Daddy's world doesn't revolve all around you, Rugrat" Victoria twirls a strand of her hair with her finger as the venom runs through her voice, "Now, when your Dad comes back in here you will smile all little girl like and let him know just how much you like me whether you enjoy it or not."

 

It's at that moment when she realizes just how much she hates this imitation of a woman already.

 

And there's no doubt in her mind that Cassie would hate this woman and that her mother would be absolutely annoyed with her as well. 

 

"Are we understood, _Callie?"_

 

 _"It's_ Cassie." she corrects her instantly with an aggravated huff and sharp tongue. At this point, it felt like she was trying to have a conversation with a brick wall.

 

"It's whatever the hell I say it is." Victoria's lips stretch into a warm smile as she beckons a wave at the window behind Amelia which indicates her father is on his way back in the room, and that's enough for her to be pissed off all over again.

 

"Sorry about that, McCloskey wants to talk shop soon." he settles himself back in his seat and rubs Amelia's hand with a warm smile. 

 

"Did you two find something interesting to talk about?" he points at her and Victoria.

 

She had to give the woman credit, she knew how to play the role of the doting girlfriend pretty well. Too well that it makes Amelia livid that Dad hasn't caught on to the act yet. 

 

Wait till Cassie gets a load of this.

 

* * *

 

 "Do you ever think of getting married again?" Cassie asks her mother as they laid underneath the duvet in her mother's bedroom the following night.

 

Her mother hums at that as she adjusts her glasses and looks away from the television, "Married? Honey, that's the least of my worries right about now."

 

Cassie nervously plays with her fingers and looks back up at the television screen hanging above the fireplace.

 

They were having their annual movie night and it was apparently her turn to pick which movie they would watch together as they feasted on Ice Cream.

 

So, she picked 'My Best Friend's Wedding' and it took a lot of convincing for her mom to actually play it thanks to the PG-13 rating.

 

"Wouldn't it be fun though?" she sits up; carefully of the bowl in her lap, "You falling in love with someone who loves you, wearing a pretty white dress..with the vows and the cake and all of that?"

 

Her mother looks at her like she's lost her mind.

 

"I've had all of that and it's not as magical as you think baby." she leans forward and gives her hands an encouraging pat.

 

This is how she planned for it to go, and if Mom responds the way Cassie expects her to, she can probably somehow convince her into talking about Dad.

 

"It wasn't magical with Dad then?" she blinks at her eyes in surprise.

 

Her mom chews on her bottom lip as she reaches for the remote and pauses the movie.

 

"Okay you, what is going on with you? You're obsessed with weddings and have been hounding me with questions about your Dad since you've gotten back from camp." her mother adjusts her glasses as she lets out a slight chuckle.

 

"Spill." she fixes the eye mask resting on the top of Cassie's head.

 

Cassie moves the strawberry blonde bang from her eyes, "Can you blame me, Mom. I spent the past eight weeks hearing girls practically gushing over how amazing their Dads are."

 

"Did you mention how amazing _your_ Mom is?"

 

"Yes I did." she gives her Mom a knowing smile, "But, I realized at that moment that you've never actually told me about Dad. And there's so much I want to know."

 

She blows out her cheeks, "Fine. What is it that you're dying to know?"

 

She adjusts her body underneath the covers and places the bowl on the side table.

 

"Where did you guys meet? What was he like?"

 

A look of remembrance flashes on her Mom's face and Cassie sees a slight glimmer in her eyes.

 

"We met in DC, at a Correspondents Dinner." she zones out with a small smile inching on her lips, "And he was...handsome, he made me go a bit weak at the knees when he smiled at me. Unfortunately for me, he wasn't there for me."

 

"Who was he there for?"

 

 _"Business."_   she runs a hand through her hair, "But so was I." 

 

"Was it love at first sight?" 

 

She watches the way her Mom pauses at that question and goes to spooning her Cookies n' Creme ice cream and tapping the metal spoon against the bowl.

 

"Something along those lines." her eyes stares at the dessert bowl in her lap.

 

Cassie pulls her knees to her chest in interest.

 

Whenever she had asked her father about her mom, he would get unusually quiet and give her simple one-worded responses that were enough to keep her mother a mystery for all eleven years of her life.

 

But, seeing her mother, so vulnerable, talking about him..lets him know that there was and possibly still is a connection between the two of them.

 

"You're just like him though." 

 

Her eyes widen in surprise, "Really?" her arms squeeze her legs closer to her chest, "How so?"

 

She takes a deep breath in and releases it, "You're smart like he is..not to mention you've developed that little smirk he used to do all the time."

 

Cassie laughs at that.

 

"I hated when he would do it but, it's quite adorable when you do it." she presses a finger of Cassie's nose which makes her smile.

 

"Do you miss him?"

 

"At first I did..but after a while, I realized that you're all I needed." she runs a hand through Cassie's hair which causes her to nuzzle her head against her shoulder. 

 

She could tell that it was the first time she had ever really spoken about her feelings on the whole ordeal with her Dad. The pain in her eyes indicates that despite it taking place almost a decade ago, there's still pain within it.

 

"I love you, Mom," she whispers as she envelops her mom into a warm hug.

 

"I love you too, Mill."

 

And for a second, she completely forgets that her Mom is talking to Amelia, not her. 

 

And even though it's apart of the plan, it still kinda hurts.

 

* * *

 

 She's awakened from her sleep by a loud ring. 

 

Cassie darts up in bed as she blindly moves her arm around the pitch black room. She rolls to her side and flips the bedside lamp on, allowing soft pink light to be brought to the right side of the room.

 

She pushes her eyemask up as she picks up her ringing and buzzing loudly and silently swears at herself to pull herself together as she tries to actually answer the phone without waking up the whole household. 

 

 _"Hello?"_ she whispers in a small voice as she rubs the sleep from her eye.

 

"Cass, it's me. We've got an emergency." she hears Amelia's voice on the opposing line. 

 

Ugh, why was Amelia calling her so late at night? Unless someone had died while she was sleeping she honestly found no use in this call anyway. 

 

"Millie. It's four in the morning-can't this wait till later?" she yawns into her phone.

 

In New York, Amelia stands in Cassie's bathroom with bright eyes and the shower water running to drown out the sound of her voice. 

 

"No." Amelia protests, "This can't wait."

 

Cassidy groans as she props herself against the covers, "Okay. Spill." 

 

Amelia plays with her hair as she looks at herself in the mirror, "Dad's dating somebody." 

 

Amelia's expecting for Cassie to throw a fifth-degree panic attack right along with her. How dare their dad waste his precious time on some recently graduated woman who was old enough to be their older sister instead of being with their mom. 

 

It pissed her off. 

 

Instead, Cassie just laughs.

 

"Why are you laughing?" Amelia demands angrily, "This is serious." 

 

Cassie yawns, "Nothing about Dad's relationships are _serious,_ Millie. It'll last for about a week or two and next thing you know she'll be in the dark 

 

"No, Cassie. You don't get it, he's in love with her." 

 

She snorts, "Dad doesn't do love."

 

"Well, regardless of what you think, you need to get Mom out here fast." 

 

Cassie pauses, "Now? It's been a solid day, I can't just _tell_ her." 

 

Amelia sighs as she brushes her eyebrows, "Well, you have to. How else are we going to get Dad away from that awful woman?"

 

Cassie pinches the bridge of her nose as she rolls her neck, "Call me in a few hours and...I'll have something figured out. Until then, find out some more stuff about this woman." 

 

Amelia sighs, "Alright, I'll do it. Now get some sleep, lazy."

 

Finally, she was starting to make sense. 

 

"Thank you." Cassie groans and bids her sister farewell.

 

How hard was it for people to understand that a sleep schedule was something that you cannot mess with it?

 

* * *

 

 

"How'd you sleep last night, Ms. Amelia," John asks her as she eats her cereal.

 

She takes a bite of her Cheerios and nod.

 

"Okay, I'm still a tad bit tired though," Cassie says with a slow, tired voice.

 

After she had gotten off the phone with Amelia, it was hard for her to go back to sleep knowing that her Dad had found someone else. 

 

It was never really that big of a deal before but, for some strange reason, this one didn't feel right. She's seen a lot of women come and go, and she was never fond of any of them really, so, she had a feeling this one wouldn't prove different. 

 

"I understand." he gives her a reassuring nod as he places a glass of Orange Juice in front of her. 

 

"I'd be exhausted if I had just returned home from camp and was taking phone calls at four in the morning." 

 

_Crap._

 

She was screwed.

 

There are a million and nine excuses in her head that she could use for this scenario-ranging from getting a bout of food poisoning in the middle of the night and calling her Grandmother for help to receiving a call from one of those pesky telemarketers she had always heard adults complain about. 

 

"Who were you on the phone with?" he tilts his head to the side.

 

She sputters as she drops the spoon in her bowl to nervously wringing her hands, "You know..a friend from camp who lives in New York, no big deal." she waves a hand dismissively.

 

The older man adjusts his glasses and leans against the granite kitchen counter. 

 

"Amelia. Are you okay?" a look of worry flushes his face, "Ever since you've returned you've been a tad bit.. _.different."_

 

There's so much she wishes she can say but, she knows the minute she does everything will change. 

 

Keeping in the secret of her actually being Cassie was burning inside of her so deep, it gave her stomach pains. With every step she took, she felt like she would explode within any given second. 

 

"I'm fine." she shakes her head, "No need to worry about me." 

 

"Well, that I can't help," John responds with a sad smile. 

 

And that makes her feel guilty even more. 

 

Her mom wasn't around and maybe it would..help if she told John? He seemed like a trustworthy confidant and she needed someone she could trust to help her with this whole ordeal.

 

So, when he turns away, she clears her throat loudly to gain his attention. 

 

"Actually, there's something I need to tell you, John." she keeps her eyes down. 

 

John's ears perk up as he inches towards her with a sympathetic look on his face. 

 

"Whatever it is, I'm all ears." he offers.

 

Well, here goes nothing. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Make sure to leave a comment and or kudos!
> 
> They are both greatly appreciate and highly encouraged!


	4. Mother Knows Best (Or We Hope So At Least)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> There was an unsettling feeling running through Cassie's veins. All her life (well, for as long as she could remember) it had always been her and her Dad. Even during the millions of affairs he had with all those other women, she never had to worry because he always let her know that she was a priority.
> 
> There was the red-headed account, champagne blonde television producer and even the raven-haired wall street tycoon and none of them were able to stay with him. It was always Cassie there at the end of the day. Just her and her dad.
> 
> And that's how she liked it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'd like to dedicate this chapter to my lovely friends Ruby and Sarah yet again. They've helped me a great deal with this story and I am certain that half of this chapter wouldn't have been written without their help!
> 
> Thank you to those of you who have been leaving kudos and comments on EACH and every chapter! I greatly appreciate the overwhelming amount of love and support you all are showering me with!

"I'm not who you think I am." Cassie releases a sigh she didn't know she was holding in.

 

John's eyebrow arches at her in confusion, "I'm sorry? You've lost me, Ms. Amelia."

 

 _Well._ Better out than in.

 

"That's because I'm not Amelia." she ditches the imitation of Amelia's voice and uses her native voice.

 

James' eyes widen in confusion as his jaw drops and go slack.

 

"Wait..." he holds his hands up as he removes himself from the barstool with his head hanging in bewilderment, "If you're not Amelia, then you must be.." his mouth forms to say her name but the emotion takes over his face and her heart breaks when she sees the tears forming in his eye.

 

"You're.."

 

"Cassie." she stands up and awkwardly plays with her fingers, "I'm Cassidy, _Amelia's_ twin." she declares as she pulls the hair tie from her hair and shakes her head to let her strawberry blonde flow.

 

"You're Cassidy?" his eyes widen in disbelief as he removes his glasses to get a better look at her. 

 

"I'm Cassidy," she admits for the first time in almost twenty-four hours. 

 

Before she can further explain herself, she's found herself lifted into the air in a strong hug as a weird sound escapes from John's throat that sounds like he's either crying hysterically or having a panic attack. 

 

He puts her feet back on the ground and gives her the chance to fix herself.

 

"Well, if you're Cassidy then where's Amelia?" his eyes flash with panic

 

She sighs and runs a hand through her hair, "She's in New York with Dad, I guess Mom and Dad both think the same because they both ended up sending us to Camp Tommy without knowing the other sent us."

 

John chuckles at that with a sad smile, "They've always been like that." he nods earnestly which prompts her to laugh.

 

Admitting it took a weight off her shoulder. she didn't feel as heavy as she once did. It felt nice to take the burden of knowing something that everyone around her didn't know. 

 

"Oh, Cassidy." he tucks a strand of her hair behind her ear and pulls her in for yet another hug, "The last time I saw you, you were in diapers and barely speaking."

 

She nods and uses her sleeve to wipe away the tears sliding down her face, "I'm sorry I didn't tell you before, I figured that I could wait and tell both of you at the same time."

 

He reels back for a moment, "Your mother doesn't know about all of this?"

 

She shakes her head as John's forehead creased in confusion.

 

"No." she mumbles with shame, "I haven't been able to tell her because I've been so nervous to and..I don't want her to hate me," she admits with her head hanging low. 

 

She didn't know how her Mom would react to the news that she was actually Cassidy. How do you start a conversation with your long lost mother by admitting that you are not the child she believes you are both physically and literally after she revealed some of her deepest feelings about her father over Ice Cream and Rom-Coms?

 

If her fury was anything similar to how Amelia had described it to her, she didn't want to be a witness to any fury she happens to spit when she finds out the truth.

 

"Honey, you have to tell her the truth soon. At least before she finds out on her own." 

 

She nods earnestly, "I can't tell her now though. I have to tell Amelia the next part of the plan so we know what to do to get Mom and Dad to meet again.

 

He pauses as he looks her up and down in confusion, "Are you asking me to lie to your Mom?" 

 

"It's not lying, it's just. _.creative semantics."_ she feigns with a half shrug of her shoulders. 

 

Creative semantics? Christ, was she seriously starting to turn into her Dad? Yes, in some instances she would applaud herself for being like her father (in terms of the cool factor he manages to display on a daily basis), she now found herself internally insulting herself at sounding like her middle-aged Dad so much. 

 

John inhales a sharp breath, "Good grief, you really are Egan's kid." he facepalms in defeat as his head shakes in disbelief.

 

She plops her body into the seat next to John as she plays with her fingers and nervously begins to scrape off the pink nail polish Amelia had somehow convinced her to use all in the good nature of 'Getting into character'.

 

"I know that you're pissed over this happening and if you are..then be pissed at Amelia, not me." she tries.

 

Technically, it wasn't true but, she figured that Amelia could handle her mom being pissed at her more than she could.

 

"I'm not mad, Cassie."

 

She blew out her cheeks and leaned against the countertop.

 

"Are you sure?" she tests him-she didn't like the feeling of knowing that someone she cared about was upset with her; it was an unsettling feeling. 

 

John pinches the bridge of his nose as he removes his thick-rimmed glasses, "I'm actually quite happy-I mean your mother has loved you your entire life and hasn't forgotten about you."

 

"She hasn't?" she feels her eyebrows raise in surprise.

 

John nods and pats her shoulder with a warm smile, "Some nights..after you-well, _Amelia_ has gone to sleep, she'll stay up and go well into the night thinking about you and wondering about your well being."

 

Hearing the information about her Mom sulking into the depths of the night thinking about her (and quite possibly Dad too) was enough to make her heartbreak and feel guilty all over. 

 

How could Dad live with knowing that Mom was out here heartbroken how everything ended up between them? She didn't want to believe that Dad was coldhearted and selfish enough to shelter both of them away from his true feelings but, it was starting to seem like it.

 

"Does she ever think about my Dad?" she inquires with a soft tone.

 

John makes an incoherent noise and shrugs, "Unfortunately for us all, yes. It's not as bad as it once was but, it's pretty bad." he admits with a hint of sadness in his hazel eyes.

 

"Is she depressed?" she tries

 

John's mouth begins to form the words but he's cut off from the door swinging open. 

 

"John, have you seen Mill-" she stops in her tracks as she enters the kitchen and is met with both Cassie and John in the middle of the kitchen at the granite counter.

 

"Oh, there you are." her mom beams a bright smile at her as she inches over to her and John with a bright smile. 

 

"I thought you were at work?" Cassie jumps back into Amelia's tone flawlessly.

 

"I was but, John reminded me that I have to get fitted for an outfit for this upcoming ball I'm going to so, I had to come back and grab some things."

 

John stands from the stool and dusts his clothes off, "Actually, I've got to handle some of your affairs with shipping and handling those letters of recommendation you were asked to write.".

 

She watched as Mom bowed her head in response and groans hesitantly, "That's right. I completely forgot about that." she signs, "Well then I guess I'll just postpone it until Saturday or whatever." 

 

Dress Shopping? In San Fransisco? That sounded like a dream and a half, and maybe she could convince Mom to get some more Ice Cream too (She wasn't really allowed Ice Cream back home). 

 

"How about I go?" she faces her Mom with a small smile, "I can help you find a dress." 

 

Her mom looks down at her with a raised eyebrow, "Are you sure? I may have to drop by the Office too at some point" she feels her Mom's hand gently pat the top of her head.

 

"Of course, I'll put on a coat and meet you downstairs." Cassie removes her body from the stool and makes her way through the wooden door.

 

"John? Has Millie been acting strange to you?" Amy chews on her bottom lip as she stares longingly at the door. 

 

John's body freezes as he looks up from the counter and throws Amy a half shrug as he tries his hardest to reserve the knowing panic of Cassie's secret on his face. 

 

"Weird? Not to my understanding, no." he turns away and inches towards the refrigerator. 

 

Amy dusts off her pencil skirt as she slides onto the stool with a collapsed sigh, "I mean her hair is cut even though she prefers it long, she apparently likes Clam Chowder now and not to mention her obsession with her father hit an all-time high yesterday.".

 

On the outside of the kitchen, Cassie leans her weight against the white kitchen door with her ear placed firmly against it.

 

John pours a gracious mimosa and slips it to Amy which she takes (much against her better judgment). 

 

"She's just a growing girl, that's all." John waves a hand as he begins to busy himself with looking around the kitchen as if it's his first time ever being in the house. 

 

As she takes a sip of the yellow beverage, she takes that in. Ever since Amelia had come back from camp, it was like she was a completely different person. It's not like that was possible, she knew who her kid was, she could pick her out in a field of a million strawberry blonde eleven-year-olds with brown eyes.

 

Having had enough, Cassie gathers herself and makes her way up the stairs and straight to Amelia's bedroom to prepare for the day.

 

"I'm sure it's nothing." John consoles her with one of those charming smiles that usually helps set Amy at ease without hesitation.

 

Usually, she would agree with him and just shrug it off but, at the same time, it sure as hell doesn't _feel_ like nothing.

* * *

"Good morning, Cassidy. You're looking well." A tall man with grey hair and a grey-streaked beard greets her the minute she and her father stepped off the elevator. 

 

"Good.. _.morning?"_ she searches the mysterious mans face to find out exactly who he is. It didn't help that the other man who waved at her was nestled in a matte black office chair with a blue mug gripped in his right hand.

 

"Christ, Kent. Kids don't like it when they're greeted by Robocop in the morning, would it kill you to sprinkle in some personality?" the heavier man releases an irritated huff as she adjusts his body in the seat to put his legs up on the opposing office chair.

 

Ah. So that was Uncle Kent. And it would make sense that Ben would be the other man (she had seen the mug in a photo Cassie had shown her).

 

"Robocop is an American treasure and not to mention one of the highest grossing trilogies of all time, I take your attempt at a dry form of harassment as a compliment by all means." Kent holds a finger to the air as she runs a precise hand through the manila folder on the glass table.

 

 _"Amazing."_ her Dad shakes his head and puts a hand on her back to escort her out of the room and towards what she assumes his office, "Cass. I've got this really big meeting today so, you can just hang out here in my office." 

 

She nods and runs a hand through her hair as they twist and turn through the hallways, passing various offices of people working and meeting on various projects. 

 

"That's fine." she gives him a smirk; reminiscent of Cassie's, "Who are you meeting with?" she blinks her eyes at him.

 

He adjusts his tie as she swings open the door to his office and lets Amelia brush past him in awe, "A congressman from Washington who needs some backing for an upcoming vote." 

 

She pauses at that, _"Vote?"_

 

He pulls out his phone and nods at that, "Yeah, the Congressional Elections.".

 

That's what her Mom was working on. 

 

"Is he running for reelection or to take over a seat?" she plays with her fingers in her lap as she adjusts her body in the comfortable office chair.

 

The response garners an eyebrow raise from her father which he quickly ignores as he turns his body to the mirror hanging on the wall next to him. 

 

"Reelection." 

 

"Democrat or Republican?" 

 

"Democ-Since when have you become a political strategist?" he gives her a look up and down as he releases an uncomfortable chuckle.

 

Crap. Cassie basically freaked when she found out that Mom had an inch to do with the political atmosphere, and it didn't sound like Dad had such a great companionship with them so far. How was she supposed to give a clear and Cassie-esqe answer all while remaining cool, calm and collected?

 

"Ever since I've found out the benefits of being able to fool Washington insiders with the clever idea of thinking that I actually care about whether or not their bill on School Lunch getting passed all while taking every hard earned dollar." she gives a dramatic flip of her bob

  
From the way Dad looks at her, she can tell that she's charmed him enough and he can practically see his own reflection through her eyes as she stares at her proudly.

 

"That's my girl." he gives her a high five with a smile that's all smug and charm.

 

"Behave." he grabs his notepad and gives her a stern finger and closes the door behind himself.

 

The minute the door slams shut, her shoulders fall and she releases a deep breath from her diaphragm. No wonder she despises lying, all of the hard work and anxiety that came along with it was totally not worth it. 

 

After she takes a minute for herself, she's up at attention and darting around the room in search for anything she could find in relation to her Mom. She's rifling through the silver and glass furniture and takes photos of what is she can find useful in the future.

 

It's not until she stumbles over a business card with Victoria's name sprawled in widow red ink that she feels successful in her findings. 

 

 _'Victoria Rossdale, Publicity Head'_ reads the silver lined business card

 

Deciding to not bother turning on the laptop, she pulls out her phone and quickly types out Victoria's name in the google search bar and she waits as she watches the search results load. 

 

If there's anything Amelia loves to do, it's research. She loves educating herself on anything. Give her a phone and topic and she can tell you all of the members of the United States cabinet in alphabetical order to the type of Oatmeal the Queen eats every morning.

 

"Hey, kid." the door swings open revealing Ben with a small dish nestled in his hands, "Your Dad and Kent are in the meeting for a while so, I found a deck of cards and figured they could have more use with ya'." he inches towards the desk and extends the deck of cards to her.

 

The light hits the black KEM Poker Card box and it's enough for Amelia to almost (almost) forget what it is she was doing prior to that current moment. 

 

"Wow." her eyes blink in amazement at gold lining shining ever so bright in the light from the ceiling light, "Thanks, Uncle Ben." she takes the box from his hands and places it on the glass desk.

 

"No problem, kid." he gives her a warm smile and turns his body away as he makes his way through the door but a lightbulb goes off in Amelia's head. 

 

"Wait, Uncle Ben!" 

 

He turns back around with high eyebrows.

 

She clears her throat and plays with the business card in her hand feeling the smug smile drawing in on her face.

 

"Would you be able to tell me about this Victoria woman?" 

 

She can tell he's weighing his options. From the longing look in his eyes, he can tell that he's torn between going back to his office to take a nap or sitting down and telling her all about Victoria. 

 

"Why? You don't like the woman or something?" he closes the door behind her and plops himself into the seat in front of the desk as she adjusts herself in the main office chair behind the desk.

 

She makes a noise she's unsure of but from the look on Ben's face, she can tell he knows exactly what she's thinking. 

 

"I don't trust her." she shakes her head angrily, "I met her last night and she was awful to me not to mention the fact that she's thirteen years older than me, she could be my big sister if she wanted to," she complains.

 

"Trust me, you're not the only one, kid." he pinches the bridge of his nose.

 

That grabs her attention. Was she right in thinking that Victoria was a golddigger who didn't give a flying crap about her Dad? If she, an eleven-year-old could see right through her, then there's no doubt in her mind that someone else must've seen through the act. 

 

"What else can you tell me about her?" she leans on her elbows against the table with anticipation running in her eyes.

 

He opes his mouth but quickly closes it after a look of realization hits him like a freight train. "I don't know, Cassie B. I don't need your Dad having one of those panic attacks he usually gets when someone mentions her." 

 

"Why does he hate talking about her?" she tries and busies herself with the business card in her hand.

 

She watches as the older man pauses for a moment and leans back in his seat with his eyes glossing over her. "Has he seriously never spoken about her with you?"

 

She shakes her head with a sad smile, "Every time I ask..he gets all weird." 

 

Ben groans at that and crosses his arms, "I'll tell you what, kid." he sits up at his seat to attention and takes the packaged cards in his hands, "If you happen to beat me in a round of poker, I'll tell you whatever it is you need to know about whatever it is you want to know. Deal?"

 

See? That's a deal she could get with.

 

Needless to say, by the end of the game, she's found herself with thirty dollars more in her account and with all, she needs to know her parents and most importantly, Victoria.

 

She's never been more grateful for Uncle Ben in her entire life.

* * *

"Cass, can I come in?" Her dad knocks on her bedroom door.

 

She looks up from her computer with panicked eyes and closes the laptop shut without hesitation, "Uh, sure." 

 

Usually, nothing good ever followed those words. Last time someone had mentioned that phrase to her she found out her Grandpa had a heart attack, one of her Mom's favorite clients lost their seat in the House and oh yeah, she learned that her Grandparent's cat had died.

 

He closes the door behind himself and makes his way to the purple Lawson Style Sofa on the right side of the room.

 

"I have something important I need to tell you." he waves her over to join home on the sofa. She runs a hand through her Strawberry Blonde bob and sits on the edge of the sofa. 

 

"I have something I need to tell you too." the words tumble out of her mouth before she can stop it. It's not like she wants to tell him about the switch but, after hearing what Ben had told her about Victoria she had a feeling that telling him might put an end to the mockery of a relationship.

 

He takes a deep breath as his hands rub together; Amelia can sense he's nervous about whatever it is he's about to tell her. 

 

"What do you need to talk about?" his face frowns in realization at her.

 

Her chest rose up and down with rapid breaths as she tries to still herself with trying to phrase her words the right way. Personally, she's not mentally ready to admit the secret. She hasn't spoken to Cassie all day, how was she supposed to know what to do if she doesn't have a plan to follow?

 

"I wanted to talk about Mom a little bit." she picked at her nails nervously. 

 

At the mention of her Mom, she watches as her Dad's jaw locks in discomfort and he begins to distract himself with removing his suit jacket. 

 

"I just..I want to know what she's like, Dad." she jumps to explanation, "When I was at camp...everyone was talking about their Moms and I couldn't really contribute anything to the conversation." 

 

"What's wrong with that?" he shrugs his shoulders nonchalantly.

 

She feels her shoulders tense up, "Daddy, how long am I supposed to pretend that I was hand delivered from a stork?" she gives him a look of disbelief.

 

He scoffs at that, "I've never told you that you were delivered from a stork." he shakes his head diligently.

 

 _"That's_ my point." she feels a burning sensation build in her chest, "You haven't told me anything about her. I just want to know a few things.".

 

"Why do you need to know so bad, Amelia. You have me, your Grandma and Eva who all take care of you." he gives her a protesting shrug.

 

"Because I want a mom." she jumps to her feet; the determination of getting him to just listen to her fuels her blood. "I want a mom and a dad, not just a dad." she scolds herself for the way her voice speaks. 

 

"Cass, sit back dow-"

 

"Did you know that the offspring of divorced parents are 75% more likely to experience injury, asthma, headaches and speech troubles than children who have both parents active in their lives?" 

 

A frown falls upon his face as he watches her pace back and forth muttering various statistics and facts all relating to the systematic downfall of children with divorced parents.

 

The move is enough to confuse him even more (for some strange reason). This was completely unlike Cassie. Since when did Cassidy give a shit about her Mom? Well, probably always but it's not like she ever put up much of a fuss to actually learn about her. 

 

Not to mention the fact that she was spitting out statistics and solving equations at the drop of the hat? Last time Dan had checked, he sent her to a little girly camp-not some Yale based math Institution.

 

"I mean, aren't you lonely?" she questions with her voice hitting an all-time high which is enough for Dan to get up and cross over to her with a hand on her shoulder.

 

"Cassidy, sit down and let me speak." he directs her back to the couch and she dutifully doesn't put up a fight.

 

"Fine." she gives in a sympathetic tone as she readjusts her body on the couch.

 

Sometimes it hurts him to look at Cassie, especially now, when she was the spitting image of her Mom. Dan always liked to think that he struck the goldmine with his girl. From her big chocolate eyes to the freckles dotting her face, it was considerate that the genes were able to give their daughter at least a neighborhood of his looks to live.

 

 _"Cass."_ his tone is slow and cautious, "About Victoria and I." 

 

"Finally, I've been waiting to tell you, Dad. Victoria is such a -"

 

"We're getting married, honey," he admits carefully and his heart races as the room falls silent. 

 

Amelia's eyes widen in surprise as she feels her heart practically be split right down the middle. Is this what heartbreak felt like? Is this how Emma Thompson felt in 'Love, Actually' when she found out that the necklace wasn't for her? Or even in 'The Lion King' when Simba found Mufasa trampled by the stampede?

 

Because it sure as heck felt like it.

 

"You're getting married?" she jumps back to her feet and screeches at the top of her lungs, "To her?" 

 

"Cass, calm down-"

 

"I can't!" she throws her hands in the air, "How can I stay calm when you're marrying some girl whose old enough to be my big sister?" 

 

"Okay, Cassidy..you're overrea-"

 

"Don't tell me I'm overreacting!" she holds a finger to him as she begins to make her way over to the walk-in closet door after grabbing her phone from the bed on her way over it.

 

"Cassidy, come back." he trails after her with a look of irritation playing on his soft features.

 

"No thank you." she slams the closet door behind her and throws herself onto the small couch placed at the center of the closet. Jesus, how many small couches could one eleven-year-old have?

 

Giving up, Dan simply shakes his head and quickly exits the room. He figures she'll be fine after a quick meltdown or so. 

 

But it's Amelia who lays on the ground crying tears of frustration. Why must life be so unfair? Why must she (well, Cassie) be subjected to the awfulness of Victoria Rossdale just because her Dad was a little horny (and apparently lonely too).

* * *

 "Why haven't you been answering your phone?" Amelia furiously demands after Cassie answers the phone later that night.

 

"Sorry I don't live without my phone being glued to my hand, I'm spending time with my Mom for the first time ever." Cassie rolls her eyes as she begins to walk around her bathroom.

 

"Well this is urgent, I've been waiting for you hand and foot all day for you to come up with a plan." 

 

Cassie stops in front of the now familiar mirror and the feeling of guilt comes tumbling down on her as she looks at her own reflection with heavy eyes and a tense jaw. 

 

"Millie. I have something I need to tell you-"

 

"That can wait." Amelia demands furiously, "Dad and Victoria are _engaged."_ she admits with a frantic tone that's enough to snap Cassie into realization. 

 

Cassie goes lightheaded in a matter of minutes and has to sit down at the pink stool to regain some sense of stability as she tries to grasp on to the news Amelia just shared with her. 

 

Her father, the one who has sworn up and down that she is the only apple of his eye is set to get married to some freshly graduated grad school student? 

 

Amelia nods as she holds the phone with her shoulder and begins to angrily rummage through the racks and racks of clothing lining the teal painted walls. 

 

"Why would he do that?" Cassie's chest rises up and down with each angry breath she breathes, "He promised me that no woman could ever come in between him and I." she shakes her head in disbelief. 

 

"I don't know why, Cass. But she's awful, simply awful." Amelia shakes her head, "She's like Satan meets Mommie Dearest, she even had the nerve to go toe to toe with me at dinner the other night."

 

There was an unsettling feeling running through Cassie's veins. All her life (well, for as long as she could remember) it had always been her and her Dad. Even during the millions of affairs he had with all those other women, she never had to worry because he always let her know that she was a priority.

 

There was the red-headed account, champagne blonde television producer and even the raven-haired wall street tycoon and none of them were able to stay with him. It was always Cassie there at the end of the day. Just her and her dad.

 

And that's how she liked it.

 

She didn't like the idea of some new woman being a permanent fixture in her (and most importantly her Dad's life). How was she supposed to feel now that it was evident she wasn't as important to him as she believed she was?

 

"Cassie? What's wrong?" Amelia's sympathetic voice pulls Cassie back to attention.

 

Cassie takes a deep breath and wipes the tear sliding down her face, "I'm telling Mom about the switch." 

 

Amelia freezes and lets a polka dot blazer slide from her hands and straight to the ground, "What?" her voice goes up an octave, "Is this because of Victoria? Cassie, she's irrelevant, we can come up with a plan to get rid of her." Amelia tries.

 

Cassie runs a hand through her hair, "It's not that, Amelia." she releases a deep breath, "It's just...I want Mom to love me for me, not as you." 

 

"I get that but Cassie, we don't even have a plan yet." Amelia reminds her with a sharp tongue, "If you tell Mom now then she'll be inconsolable and you won't know what to do."

 

Having had enough of her sadness Cassie pulls herself together and gives herself a stern talking to internally.

 

"Did you do any research on the woman like I told you to?" she begins to pace around the bathroom and crosses her arms.

 

Amelia fumbles around in the pocket of the jacket she wore earlier that day and pulls out the silver business card, "I spoke to Uncle Ben, he told me some stuff about Victoria, apparently, she's the head of publicity at some stupid firm out here."

 

"So exposure." a lightbulb goes off in Cassie's head, "He's just looking for exposure." 

 

Amelia shrugs her shoulders, "I don't know, he's practically eating out of the palm of her hand.". It's not until Amelia walks around the room a few more times and an idea dawns on her.

 

She's thinking, that exposure..could really help a campaign. Preferably a Congressional Campaign?

 

She hits her hands against the silken material of the couch and jumps to her feet, "What if..we got Mom and Dad at the same place, at the same time for a business opportunity of some sorts." 

 

It doesn't take Cassie a long time to begin to understand what it is she's suggesting.

 

"We know their jobs inside and out. If we could just...convince them to take on 'clients' then..they'll have to see each other." Cassie's eyes widen in surprise at the thought of the plan coming together.

 

Amelia combs a hand through her hair, "Cassie? I'll call you tomorrow. I'll think this over and come up with a plan. Until then do not tell Mom about the switch, _okay?"_

 

Cassie really wanted to tell her Mom though. She didn't know how much longer she could go without revealing the secret, especially with John knowing. The poor man was practically red in the face every time he was in the room with Mom as he knew the major secret she didn't know yet.

 

"Ugh, fine." she dutifully agrees and bids her sister farewell.

 

She's still telling Mom though.

* * *

Later that night, Cassie paces outside of her Mom's bedroom waiting for her to get off the phone call so she can finally join her in her room.

 

She had spent all day trying to figure out how to actually come about telling Mom the news about her and Amelia's switch. From the way Mom spoke to her, she could tell that she loved Amelia a whole lot and Cassie can't exactly predict her Mom's reaction when she hears the truth once and for all.

 

It's not like Cassie was expecting some grand form of affection. Cassie was her child just as much as Amelia was but, she had only known her for so long. There was no way on earth that Cassie could ever hold a candle to the love that their Mom had for Amelia. 

 

It made sense though. How could you love somebody you've never met? Well, she had always loved Mom all her life despite them never meeting but, it was different for her. 

 

"What's wrong with you?" John appears at the opposite end of the hallway.

 

Cassie shakes her head; feeling every beat her heart makes, "I can't tell her tonight. What if she hates me?" she musters out nervously.

 

Cassie never got nervous. Not the time when she had to present her research report on Flamingos to all of the second-grade classes at her school, and not even when she took over one of her Dad's meetings and stepped in for Uncle Ben after he blacked out from one of his alcoholic lunches. 

 

"Honey, she doesn't hate you. Yes, she will be shocked but I promise you, she'll be happy once she knows it's you." he trots over to her quickly and places a kiss on the crown of her head, "Now go on, she's waiting for you.".

 

She watches as the man quickly descends back down the hallway and she's left at the French double doors of the master bedroom all by herself.

 

She twists open the door and makes her way into the master bedroom with small footsteps and nervously glancing around at the space of the room.

 

"There you are!" Mom's face lights up the minute she sees her daughter make her way over to the bed, "Come, sit. I decided that it's time for you to watch one of my favorite movies with me as I work on revising this speech." she pats the space next to her.

 

"That sounds great, Mom." she gives a small sigh as she climbs underneath the covers and feels her Mom pat the top of her head. 

 

"Maybe later we can convince John to get us an Ice Cream sundae from Fenton's." she gives Cassie a warm smile which is enough to make the guilt make her head hang in shame and her stomach pulse in guilt.

 

 _"Maybe."_ Cassie's tone is dry and the complete opposite of everything that Cassie's personality is. 

 

The response is weird and so un-Amelia that it causes Amy's eyebrow to arch in concern and remove her thick black frames in concern.

 

"Millie, honey. What's wrong?" Amy mutes the television and adjusts her body so she's turned towards her daughter, "Ever since you've come back from camp you've been acting..strange." she squints her sharp blue eyes at the young child.

 

Cassie bites her bottom lip and tucks a strand of her hair behind her ear, "Mom..do you love me?" 

 

Amy blinks in disbelief at the question and gives a soft chuckle, "Of course I love you, honey. What makes you think otherwise?" the woman searches the child's face and body language for answers.

 

Well. Here she goes again.

 

"Would you still love me if I told you a really big secret?" she tries.

 

Okay, now Amelia was scaring her. The girl was only eleven, and a good kid at that. It's not like she could get herself into much trouble at least. Yes, the earring piercing and hair cut behind her back proved concerning but she can't imagine her daughter getting into much trouble in their suburb of San Fransisco (and in general).

 

"Millie. I love you no matter what." she reaches out and takes Cassie's hand in hers, sending a jolting wave of energy throughout her bloodstream.

 

Cassie takes in a deep breath and folds her hand in her lap, along with her Mom's with shaky breaths.

 

"Would you still love me if I told you that I'm not Amelia?" the words leave her mouth before she realizes it.

 

From the way her brow creases as her eyes go round in shock as a look of complete and utter confusion plays on her soft features. 

 

"You're not Amelia?" Amy feels her heart split in two as it slowly starts to click in her head.

 

The girl shakes her head and chews on her bottom lip, "I'm Cassidy." she clarifies with her eyes down on the white duvet. 

 

In disbelief, Amy turns to her door to see John standing there with teary eyes and a slow nod of his head, confirming that it's true.

 

It was indeed Cassie and not Amelia as she had thought. 

 

"Amelia and I met at 'Camp Tommy' and when we met, we found out that we were sisters. So, I came up with this idea because I really wanted to meet you and Cassie wanted to meet him and...I've loved you my entire life and..I just had to meet you." Cassie falls into a rambling tone, not caring about the tear sliding down her face as she speaks.

 

She pulls Cassie in against her body with tears sliding down her own face. It was all starting to make sense now. From the piercing to the hair cut to the love of Clam Chowder. 

 

How could she had been so blind and not see it all this time?

 

"Honey, I've loved you your entire life." Amy consoles her as she uses her thumb to wipe away the tears from her face along with her own. 

 

"Really?" 

 

Amy tearful nods and takes ahold of Cassie's hands, "You and your sister are the best things to happen to me. I could never hate you two."

 

"You promise?" Cassie leans forward for clarification.

 

"Yes, I promise." Amy pulls the girl in for yet another hug.

 

It was simply miraculous. When she and Dan split over a decade ago, she didn't know whether or not she'd ever see Cassie again. At that time, all she knew was that she wanted Dan out of her life sooner rather than later and didn't take an opportunity of realizing what that would mean for the rest of her life.

 

It hurt seeing Amelia without Cassie and knowing that somewhere in the world, there was another little girl with Amelia's face thinking that she abandoned her. It broke her heart to pieces to think about it to this day.

 

But, hearing and seeing Cassie, in flesh, admitting that she actually loves her brought tears to Amy's eyes. 

 

"So, I guess you have to return me back to Dad." Cassidy leans against the pillows nervously, avoiding her Mother's eyes. 

 

"Well, you do belong to your Dad and Amelia technically belongs to me." Amy musters out a sigh as she adjusts Cassidy's glossy pigtails.

 

"His and Hers kids? Mom, this arrangement sucks." 

 

Ah. So she had her Dad's sense of humor. 

 

It's cute and funny enough to make her give a slight chuckle, "I know. It really does, Honey."

 

"But don't worry about anything, I'll take care of it." Amy pulls the child in for a comforting hug and feels at ease when Cassidy moves under her neck so her chin rests at the top of her head. 

 

Fuck, what was she supposed to do now? 


	5. Sanity? I've Hardly Heard Of Her

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's not like she was happy to find out she needed to see Dan again. While yes, she was content at knowing that Cassie was alive and well the thought of seeing Dan again after all the shit that transpired against them was enough to make her feel sick to her stomach. Not 'Butterflies in her stomach' sick but really 'Help, I'm about to throw the fuck up sick'.
> 
>  
> 
> "Ms. Brookheimer, I doubt that he'll forget who you are. You only carried and birthed the man's children, that's not something a man tends to easily forget." John takes Amy's hand and pulls her body back upright so she's sitting yet again.
> 
>  
> 
> Amy takes a deep breath and sighs, "And it's not like I've forgotten him..believe me, I tried." she facepalms as she feels an embarrassing blush begin to creep upon her face, "He had that smile..and that charm..and that fucking smirk I wanted to punch off his goddamn face." the memories flush into her brain which prompts her to groan and put her face in her hands.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As of right now, I don't know how man more chapters I'll be posting of this. Originally I had five..then I had six..and now I have eight, so hopefully, by the next chapter, I'll have an idea of how many chapters are left.
> 
> As always, there aren't enough words for me to express the love and gratitude I hold for every single person who has commented or left kudos on this story. I thank you from te bottom of my heart!

"What the actual fuck am I doing?." Amy tumbles out as she opens her closet door frantically with panic flashing in her eyes.

 

John looks at the blonde woman sympathetically as he offers her a purple blouse from the mountain of clothes resting on her bed. She plucks the blouse away from his hands and back to the bed with a defeated sigh.

 

"I haven't seen Dan Egan in almost ten years and now, I _have_ to see him because our kids decided to pull a disappearing act on us." she throws her body on to the bed, almost hitting the heap of clothes scattering the eggshell white duvet.

 

"What do I do if he doesn't recognize me?" the thought is enough to jolt her body back upright in fear with her chest rising up and down with each heavy breath, "I look awful don't I?" her hand flies to her throat as John attempts to organize the room.

 

"Ms. Brookheimer, you look-"

 

"Ugh, don't answer that." she rolls her eyes and throws herself back on the bed.

 

It's not like she was happy to find out she needed to see Dan again. While yes, she was content at knowing that Cassie was alive and well the thought of seeing Dan again after all the shit that transpired against them was enough to make her feel sick to her stomach. Not 'Butterflies in her stomach' sick but really 'Help, I'm about to throw the fuck up sick'.

 

"Ms. Brookheimer, I doubt that he'll forget who you are. You only carried and birthed the man's children, that's not something a man tends to easily forget." John takes Amy's hand and pulls her body back upright so she's sitting yet again.

 

Amy takes a deep breath and sighs, "And it's not like I've forgotten him.. _believe_ me, I tried." she facepalms as she feels an embarrassing blush begin to creep upon her face, "He had that smile..and that charm..and that fucking smirk I wanted to punch off his goddamn face." the memories flush into her brain which prompts her to groan and put her face in her hands. 

 

"Well, then it's not your fault, Ms. Brookheimer. From what I remember about him he was quite the ladies man, you can't blame yourself for falling in-"

 

Amy turns her body to narrow her heavy-lidded eyes at him. 

 

The look is enough to make the man fall silent and resume his prior activity of pulling together the messy room.  

 

"I don't love him." she declares strongly as she stands from the bed, "Dan Egan is a hormonal thirteen-year-old girl stuck in a man's body who has a stupid salt and pepper beard." she stomps her feet.

 

Whenever Amelia (or now, Cassidy) was present, she had always tried to reserve her feelings about their father within herself but, can't she feel a little animosity towards the man? 

 

He basically let her leave with his other child with hesitation and that alone was enough to make Amy never want to see his perfectly manicured face for as long as she (and Amelia) would live. 

 

"Whatever you say, Madam." John busies himself between deciding which one of Amy's pencil skirts to fold for her luggage, "Is there anything I can get you right now to take your mind off of this whole ordeal?"

 

"Booze. A shitload of booz-"

 

"Hey, Mom." Cassie swings open the door with a bright smile and dressed to the nines in one of Amelia's eggshell white skirt and lilac sweater with a black bow resting on top of her head. "Are you ready?"

 

Amy leaps from her bed and paints a faint smile, "Yes, honey. We're-I'll be done packing shortly." 

 

John raises an eyebrow at her from behind as Cassie crosses over to the vanity and begins to fix her crooked bow.

 

"Really?" her small nose crinkles, "You have nothing in your suitcase, Mom." she points at the mountain of clothes on the bed and the unfastened suitcase resting in the middle of the master bedroom.

 

"Right." she points a finger at her daughter an extends a thumb behind her to John, "Josh-I mean _James_ and I are taking care of that. Have you spoken to your father, Cass?"

 

Cassie nods with the excitement clear on her face, "He said that he and Millie will meet us tomorrow at the Ainsley Hotel in New York at around noon-ish." 

 

Tomorrow? As in the day after today?

 

"Oh wow, tomorrow, huh?" she scolds herself for the nervous laugh that escapes her throat, "That's sooner than I thought." she feels her cheeks begin to redden in anticipation of seeing her ex-husband/baby-daddy for the first time in almost a decade. 

 

"Don't worry though," Cassie's holds her hands out, "Dad says he's really excited to see you."

 

Dan Egan? Excited to see her? His ex-wife? 

 

"He is?" she folds her arms in front of her chest, feeling like a little blonde schoolgirl all over again for the first time in literal ages. She watches as Cassie simply nods and tugs at the black bow in her hair. 

 

She clears her throat. "Don't worry about your hair, I can fix it for you." Amy puts a hand on the small of Cassie's back and brings her into the master bathroom.

 

She sits Cassie in the stool she uses sits in while doing her makeup right in front of the large mirror and she begins to busy herself while looking for a brush and a comb.

 

It's not until she removes the bow and works the brush through her glossy bob that Cassie speaks up.

 

"I heard you after I told you about the switch," she admits with her eyes down.

 

Fuck.

 

"Oh." she pauses slowly, unsure of what to do next. Directly after the switch, Cassie had retreated back to Amelia's room and Amy took the time to cry. It wasn't a cry of anger, more so one of relief mixed with confusion after all these years of that damn secret weighing her down.

 

"Are you sad that I'm not Amelia?" Cassie turns so her chocolate eyes zero in on her intensely, "I mean..I know you told me that you aren't mad but, you just seemed disappointed."

 

"No." she protests strongly, "I'm not sad that you're not Amelia, Cass. I just wish that I could've seen you under...different circumstances, that's all." she removes the bow from the girl's hair and places it on the marble counter next to the brush and comb.

 

Cassie nods her head with a meek look on her face, "Me too." she admits sadly, "I've pictured this moment all my life though."

 

"And what moment would that be?" Amy's eyebrows furrow in interest.

 

"You doing my hair. When I was younger Grandma Sally or Eva would do it but since I'm older now, I had to learn how to do it myself." 

 

Fuck that made her feel bad again.

 

She never thought much of it. All Amelia's life, Amy would help her with her hair. Especially in the mornings before school, Amy would usually help her tie in one of her signature bows or just help her braid it while they talked about anything they fancied. But, Cassie was never granted that opportunity of bonding with her. 

 

"Well, any time you want me to help you with your hair, you can come over." she rubs the girl's arm which prompts her to look up at Amy and give her a warm smile.

 

"Thanks, Mom." Cassie plays with her hands in her lap, "You're the best." 

 

After she finishes fixing Cassidy's hair, the girl heaves herself off the stool and turns to Amy with a knowing look.

 

"If you're nervous about seeing Dad, don't be. He's going to love seeing you again, I promise." she gives an encouraging nod to Amy that's enough to bring her back to reality.

 

And she wasn't exactly sure she was ready to deal with it.

 

* * *

 "Good afternoon, Cassidy." Victoria warmly waves at Amelia as she enters the living room.

 

Amelia's eyebrows arch in confusion as she takes in the woman's appearance. Her thick caramel hair is in bouncy, loose waves that stop above her boobs and the vintage white Chanel outfit that she miraculous has converted into a three-piece (a coat, bra top, and skirt) that clings to her body for dear life.

 

"Hi?" Amelia inches away from the woman and looks around the room, "Where's Dad and Eva?" 

 

Victoria sighs and begins to stride around the living room, snapping pictures as if it were the home she grew up in, "Your father had to tend to a pressing matter back at the office. He asked me to stay back and make sure you didn't burn the house down." 

 

"I doubt I was the one he was referring to," she mumbles under her breath.

 

Victoria turns from the mirror, "I'm sorry?" her head (and hair) whips dangerously.

 

Amelia gives her a warm smile, "Nothing, _Mom."_

 

And that's what causes her to practically drop her ultra-expensive bottle of VOSS water on the ground in shock. The woman takes a minute to pull herself together and points a finger at Amelia, "I take it your Dad has told you about the engagement." 

 

Amelia plants herself firmly on the single chair at the middle of the sleek living room and crosses her arms over her chest, "Yeah. And I gotta say, I didn't think that you would have the guts to convince him so early. Most people wait a good year or two of dating before they start having the whole marriage and kids talk." 

 

Victoria traces a finger on the glass shelf with a few trophies and awards, " _Our_ talk was a little different. You just wouldn't understand it, I'm afraid." she warns Amelia like it's a challenge she isn't willing to take. 

 

"Try me." Amelia challenges.

 

From the way Victoria's perfectly manicured (and tailored) face reacts, Amelia can tell that she wasn't expecting that reaction from her. She gets it though, it would be easy for an adult to assume that Amelia isn't in the know and would rather take an easy way out of an uncomfortable conversation but, nothing about Amelia was easy and or uncomfortable.

 

"Fine." Victoria abandons the water bottle on a black bookcase and sets herself on the gray loveseat near the chair Amelia sits in. The woman pats the empty spot next to her, indicating Amelia to join her. 

 

"I'm not moving." Amelia looks her up and down as if she just suggested to go on a murder spree on puppies. 

 

Victoria takes that in with a deep sigh, "Fine." she uses her hand to sweep her dark-colored waves behind her back, "I think it's time we have a talk, woman to woman." 

 

What does barley legal just barely graduated college girl going to speak to her about being a woman?

 

"Fine." she shrugs her shoulders and extends an open palm, "Take it away." 

 

Victoria's eyes zero in on Amelia as she crosses her legs and takes a deep, dramatic sigh. 

 

"Your Dad is a very special man, Cassidy. He's exactly the man I've always pictured myself marrying." Victoria keeps her back straight with a confident smirk playing on her lips.

 

"I can see why _."_ she enjoys herself as she watches Victoria's crystal blue eyes zero in on her dangerously as an embarrassed blush begins to paint her rosy cheeks.

 

"Is that so?" Victoria tilts her head to the side, studying the cool, confident tone and face of Amelia as she plays with her pigtails, "What makes you so sure?"

 

Amelia nods, "I can think of about a _million_ reasons why you are into my Dad." she crosses her arms along with her legs to mirror Victoria's tense body language.

 

"You're really good at math, huh?" Victoria's tone drops an octave as she tries to sell Amelia this fantasy of her actually being somewhat decent to her. 

 

"That's what happens when you pay attention in school." Amelia props her elbow up on the armrest of the chair.

 

"Listen here you little piece of shit." she basically growls, "My concern is not whether you like me or not, or even if you find me to be suitable as your Mommy figure. In two weeks, whether you like it or not, I _will_ be marrying your father and you will deal with it. Got it?"

 

"What happens if we hit a recession?" Amelia shrugs her shoulders, "With the continuous payment of you, he'll be bound to go broke in no time. Will you still be walking down the aisle?" 

 

Victoria's jaw hinges as she begins to lean forward in intimidation, "That won't happen."

 

Amelia smirks to herself, knowing she's gotten Victoria right at the palm of her hand. At this point, Amelia knows that Victoria is fully aware of her plan to marry Dad just for his money and connections. Even though Dad was clearly too blind to see it, she wasn't and there was no way she would let this plan slide.

 

"I don't know, Vick." Amelia shrugs her shoulders and leans back in her seat, pulling out her phone, "If you actually paid attention to the economy, you would know that we're not doing too strong in the US. Especially with the current political client, we're firing away bills to cover up-"

 

"I'm not going to sit here and be subjected to your irrelevant rants, _Cassandra."_ she gives her a stern look up and down, "Tomorrow when we visit the wedding venue, I want you quiet as a goddamn mouse. Got it?" 

 

She wants to tell Victoria exactly where she can shove her stupid wedding venue at but, she realizes that a good player never reveals their tricks. Even as much as it tempted them. 

 

So, she simply shrugs her shoulders and nods with an angelic smile. 

 

"Of course, _Mom_. Anything for you."  she stands up and folds her arms as she watches Victoria basically squirm at the word 'Mom'.

 

* * *

  The minute Amelia hears the door of the hotel room open, she sprints out of her room feverishly with her heart set on one thing. 

 

Telling her Dad the truth.

 

Before she was quite adamant on keeping everything a secret but at this point..she felt there was no other option but to admit to everything.

 

Well at least before Cassie and Mom showed up to the hotel expecting for him to know. 

 

"Dad! I need to tell you something." 

 

But he's not alone, he's with Aunt Eva and from the way they stare at her, she gets a feeling that she looks all kinds of crazy and it's not helping the atmosphere whatsoever. 

 

"Cass, I have a million and nine things to do today. Eva's here to take care of you while I handle all this wedding crap." he resorts his attention to his smartphone. 

 

"Hey, honey." Eva greets her with a warm hug, "How are you?" she brushes her hand through Amelia's soft bob.

 

"I'm fine but, Dad...I really need to talk to you-"

 

Then her Dad's phone rings and he has to answer it.

 

"What's wrong, kiddo?" Eva's nose scrunches in confusion as Amelia nervously wrings her fingers and begins to pace back and forth nervously.

 

"I have to tell Dad something really important before he goes and does lord knows what with Victoria?"

 

Then Victoria exits the master room of the suite with a black dress that clings to her body so inappropriately, it makes Amelia wonder if she should even be in the same room as Victoria struts around in it. 

 

"Danny, we're late for our meeting with Stefani and Evan." Victoria trots over to her Dad with a pout on her lips that reeks of desperation and complete and utter despair. "We need to go." she snaps her fingers at Eva to hand her her purse resting on the couch near them.

 

Eva rolls her eyes as she hands the woman her purse and turns her attention back to Amelia.

 

"Cass, honey. Just calm down for a second, alright?" Eva encourages her but she's not having any of it.

 

The more and more she talks, the more it feels like everyone is ignoring her. And if there's one thing she hated more than anything, it was the feeling of nobody respecting her and what she had to say.

 

"No." she protests and turns her body back towards her Dad. 

 

"Dad, I need to talk to you _now,"_ she demands furiously.

 

Between the conversation on the phone to Victoria's demands, she almost sympathizes with all the stress her father was under. But she was trying to avoid that added stress of him surprisingly seeing her Mom and Cassie without him knowing.

 

"Cass, today's a really big deal for Daddy, okay?" Her dad finally covers his phone with his free hand, "I promise you the minute I'm free, I will talk to you about whatever it is you need help with, okay?" 

 

She sighs and simply nods her head in agreement as she feels her Dad place a kiss on the crown of her head. 

 

"We'll be back." he bids both her and Eva goodbye as he returns to his call and exits the room.

 

"Don't wait up, Munchkin." Victoria winks at Amelia which is enough for her to almost throw up right then and there.

 

The minute she hears the door slam she begins pacing back and forth and swearing to herself in French (a trait she picked up from her Mom whenever she got pissed off by conscious of her being in the room).

 

"Are you speaking French, Cass?" Eva's eyebrows at her in confusion, "C'mere, have a seat." she stands up and ushers Amelia towards the couch but she turns her body away before she can reach her. 

 

"Cassidy Bella Egan, what is wrong with you?" Eva takes a firm grip of her shoulders and shakes her gently, "For the past few days you've been driving me up the wall trying to figure out what is going on with you." 

 

She freezes. This wasn't really part of the plan. Well, she was always going to tell Eva it was just a matter of how and when she was going to and she never got that far into the thought process. 

 

"There's nothing wrong with me." she shakes her head.

 

Eva straightens out her posture and begins to pace in front of her, "You hate Clam Chowder, your favorite food in the world. You're basically a night owl when I've known you to hit the hay at eight o'clock since birth for your beauty rest..and you're swearing in French just like your Mot-"

 

Then Eva's eyes widen as she pauses mid-sentence, suddenly realizing who she was talking to.

 

"Just like my what?" Amelia looks up at her in anticipation, hoping that she'll take away the pain of having Amelia admit to it herself.

 

Eva blinks and shakes her head furiously, "No, nothing. Don't worry about it, honey." she places a kiss on the crown of her head and begins to turn away and walk away but Amelia's small voice stops her.

 

"Like my mother?" she calls out from the same spot in the middle of the room, _"Amy Brookheimer?"_

 

From the way Eva's body goes still, she can tell that she's starting to catch onto everything slightly and when she turns around and Amelia sees the look in her eyes, she can tell that everything's starting" to add up.

 

"You know who that is?" Eva's voice is small but her stare is quite loud and shocked. 

 

Amelia takes a deep breath and nods as she tucks a strand of her hair behind her ear nervously. Here goes nothing.

 

"I do because I'm not Cassie, I'm _Amelia."_

 

The words leave her throat before she has a chance to think about her current situation and whether or not she actually phrased the words in an understanding yet simplistic manner. But from the way Eva's body convulses into a sob and her hands clamped over her mouth, she can tell that the message was received. 

 

"You're Millie?" 

 

She nods, keeping her eyes down. 

 

"Cassie and I were both sent to the summer camp and we didn't know it-"

 

Eva envelops her into a big bear hug and Amelia feels oddly as ease as she feels the woman's chest rise up and down with each and every sob.

 

"I haven't seen you in so long." she blubbers, holding Amelia close, "Honey, I've missed you so much." the tears stream down the older woman's face and it makes Amelia's heart warm fondly.

 

"But what is it that you have to tell your father?" she pulls away from the hug with an arched eyebrow as she looks down at Amelia.

 

Amelia gnaws on her bottom lip out of nervousness and pulls her body away from the hug. 

 

"Mom and Amelia are kinda on their way here." 

 

Eva's eyes practically bulge out of its sockets, "As in your _Mother?"_ her features flush in panic, "Your mother is on her way here?" she waves a hand around the hotel room.

 

She nods earnestly, "But I swear it's all in good nature and that we mean well. We find out that Mom and Dad both have a common client but Mom doesn't know that he's secretly been receiving financial backing from Dad." 

 

"So what? You told them that they were meeting with completely different people or something?" 

 

"In a way, _yes._ We just convinced their assistants to schedule a solo meeting with their client but their solo meetings aren't really solo because they'll be.. _.together."_

 

 _"In_ the meeting?" Eva blinks in disbelief.

 

Amelia nods in response.

 

"Oh lord." Eva rubs her temples and breezes past her.

 

God, was it that bad of an idea?

 

* * *

 "Mom, are you okay? Cassie's eyebrows raise in concern as they make their way through the lobby of the hotel the following day with John at their heels with their luggage.

 

She watches in concern as her mother's hips sway in rhythm back and forth with a small smile playing on her lips.

 

"I'm doing quite lovely, actually." she puts a hand on her chest, "Can you believe that I haven't had a single drop of Vodka in a few years?" 

 

John rolls his eyes in response behind the two as he pushes the luggage cart across the sleek, marble lobby floors. 

 

"Could've fooled me, Ma'am." John brings the cart to a halt near the lobbying area and rummages through his shoulder bag as Mom throws herself onto the couch with her head tilted backward and her chest rising up and down.

 

"Thank god my meeting is tomorrow, I just need a cocktail and a pillow at this point." she yawns like a satisfied cat.

 

"Mom. It's two thirty in the afternoon." Cassie reminds her which prompts her mother to sigh dramatically and fold her arms over her chest.

 

"John. I want a pillow." she groans with the fatigue flashing over her soft features instantly. 

 

"One moment, Ma'am. I'm going to go check us into our room. I'll be back in a moment." John holds a finger up to her mother and turns to Cassie with a look that spells stress and frustration, "Please make sure your Mom doesn't fly off the handle for the next few minutes." 

 

Cassie rolls her eyes, "Like that'll be easy." she retorts with her head shaking in disbelief.

 

Out of all the days Mom chooses to get intoxicated, she just had to do it the day that she would be meeting with her Dad for the first time in literal ages?

 

God, this was going to be a freaking circus.

 

Cassie notices a few pitches of water with lemon and strawberries on the opposing side of the lobby. She wasn't sure how much of help a few cups of water could be to a drunk but, she figured it was worth a try.

 

"Mom. I'm going to grab you some water, I'll be back." Cassie informs her mother which prompts the woman to simply nod and give her a thumbs up which indicated she obviously has no idea whatsoever of what it is Cassie had just told her. 

 

As she makes her way across the expansive room, her thoughts begin to swirl around in her brain like a nest of angry hornets. Where was Amelia? Why wasn't she answering her phone? What was her Dad doing? And exactly what was the rest of this brilliant plan that Amelia came up with?

 

"Cass!" a loud voice booms from behind her that almost causes her to drop the glass pitcher from her hands. 

 

Her head whips around and she's met with her Dad.

 

"Dad!" she nervously smiles and places the pitcher of water back on the counter, "Whatcha doing?" she tries.

 

His face scrunches in confusion at her as he turns off his phone and plunges it into his suit pocket, "Vick left something upstairs in the room and I had to go get it for her, what are _you_ doing?" he points at her. 

 

Crap. What would she be doing?

 

"I'm..grabbing water, I'm feeling _very_ parched." she puts a hand on her chest and bats her eyelashes at him, hoping that he'll just nod and be about his day. 

 

"Did you change clothes?" he looks her up and down which prompts her to look down at her body in panic and find out that it's true-she was wearing a white skirt and yellow long sleeved blouse, along with a yellow bow (Which is something she'd never be caught dead in). 

 

 _"Yes."_ she plays with her fingers, "Eva and I were playing dress-up since we were both so bored in the hotel room." 

 

"Okay.." he nods slowly; studying her face. From the corner of her eye, she can see her Mom getting up from the couch and making her way over to John at the counter with her eyes down on her phone.

 

"It's been great talking to ya, Dad." she grabs his arm and begins to practically drag him towards the elevators designated for the banquet and wedding rooms, "Don't wanna keep you and your bride-to-be waiting, see ya!" she pushes him into the first open elevator she finds and waves at him as the doors close in between the two of them.

 

She breathes a sigh of relief as she makes her way back over to her mother and John (who has a knowing look of panic on his face).

 

"Was that your father?" he whispers so quietly that only Cassie hears him, "Yes, I had to act like myself so he wouldn't get suspicious though." 

 

"Alright, let's go to the room so I can take a shower and get out of these goddamn heels." her Mom breaks in-between them and makes her way towards the elevators. 

 

"This isn't going to end well, you know that, right?" John looks down at her as they watch her Mom aimlessly try to decipher which button is for the elevator versus the emergency button.

 

"Yeah, I'm starting to get a sense of that." Cassie simply sighs in disbelief.

 

* * *

 It's not like Amy enjoyed getting drunk.

 

Well, who did? Sure, the process of getting to the point of intoxication was a tad bit more fun when she was in her college days or even have a glass or two of wine after Amelia got to bed. But, she was stress-drunk and that wasn't quite appealing.

 

On the six-hour flight, she spent the entire time downing and downing those complimentary bottles of Vodka the stewardess slide to the passengers who were undergoing fear of flight but she, however, was simply facing the fear of the unknown.

 

The minute she found herself sitting down in the hotel room, she started to lose her mind again. From Cassie bumbling around the room to John practically fawning over her and her emotional well-being every five minutes, she needed everyone to just leave her be.

 

Which is how she ends up at the downstairs bar all by herself with a Bellini and a major headache.

 

Then to make herself feel better, some preppy and extremely polished Brunette takes a seat at the counter next to her and orders a Cosmopolitan that makes Amy chuckle a tad bit.

 

To be that young, pretty and thin must be nice. Having idiots (like the Bartender standing in front of them) pay for her drinks with a toothy grin and no hesitations.

 

"Would you like to charge your drinks to your room, Ms. Brookheimer?" the Bartender drops another Bellini in front of her. 

 

She nods graciously and puts down the now empty glass as she reaches out for the other, "Yes, please." she takes a long sip of the cold beverage and accidentally lets a satisfied moan escape her lips. 

 

"Wait a minute, are _you_ Amy Brookheimer?" the young brunette turns in her seat as her eyes widen in surprise.

 

Fuck, the last thing she was in the mood to deal with was some fresh out of grad school, political junkie who was in need of a job. While she understood what it was like to be young and have that burning sensation of power residing at the pit of her stomach, she wasn't in the best of moods to deal with all of that pluckiness in that current moment.

 

"Yes. Yes, I am." she gives the young woman a nod.

 

The brunette woman squeals and takes a firm grip on Amy's arm which tenses her body up.

 

"I'm Victoria Rossdale Blake." she takes Amy's hand and shakes it firmly, "I'm a publicity head here in New York and I've been _dying_ to meet you." she clutches her chest dramatically.

 

"Really?" Amy can't even hide the confusion on her face. 

 

"Yes!" she exclaims, ignoring the Bartender placing her drink in front of her, "I've been actively looking for a potential candidate to help with publicity and all of your candidates seem like the perfect clients for me." she begins to ramble.

 

"Well, that's lovely. It really is." 

 

Then she starts rambling and if it wasn't for the irresistible cocktail, then Amy would've been long gone by now. It's not like the talk was even worth the extra thirty minutes she spent down there, especially since Victoria spent the entire time gushing about her fiancee and the millions of dollars sitting in his bank account that he'll dump into her lap for the pure enjoyment of her being successful.

 

Part of her wanted to tell her exactly what'll happen with this 'spectacular' fiancee of hers. The minute she has an inch more power than he holds, he'll flip and eventually he'll lose all interest in her and her dreams and dump her flat on her ass. 

 

If anyone knew how men and relationship operated, it would be her, the divorced thirty-seven-year-old sitting in a bar drinking herself into oblivion. 

 

* * *

 Taking time for herself, Amy decides to slide on some sunglasses and take a stroll around the large pool.

 

The weather was surprisingly gloomy so, the area was quite deserted except for a small group of people on the opposing side of the pool.

 

Just her, her bottle of water and the quiet atmosphere. She was never one of taking part in the great outdoors but, being surrounded by the hard to located silence of New York was quite possibly one of the best things to happen to her within that hour. 

 

Deciding to relax, she slides on a beach chair and looks at the view of the pool. 

 

 _It's quite an_ extravagant _view,_ she thinks to herself. The way that the pool is located directly in the center with a grand fountain residing on a marble island smack dab in the middle is enough to distract her for a few seconds. The way the fountain spits out the water in a different motion-light sprinkle, a slow curl, and impressive loop catches her eye as she plays with the plastic water bottle.

 

"Mom." a small voice whispers behind her. 

 

She groans as she whips her head quickly and is met with..well her kid but, she's not sure which one it actually is.

 

"It's me, Cassidy." she clarifies with a whisper.

 

"Thank god." she puts a hand on her heart and waves herself, "You and your sister are starting to look more and more alike which each moment." Cassie groans as she helps Amy to her feet. 

 

"Mom. Let's go back to the room." Cassie tries to turn her body but Amy digs her heels into the ground. 

 

"Honey, I really need a moment to myself." she shakes her head, "I'll join you and John upstairs soon, okay?" she bends down and presses a kiss on the crown of her head. 

 

A surge of panic sears through Cassie's body as she watches Amy breeze past her and begins to make her way around the pool. She sprints ahead of her and holds her arms out, keeping her Mom in place.

 

"I can't let you do that." Cassie looks out of the corner of her eyes and sees Dan and the wedding planner making their way around the pool.

 

Amy pauses and removes her sunglasses, "And why is that?" 

 

Cassidy takes a deep breath and returns her eyes back to Amy, "I can tell you as we head up to the room. Let's go." she turns her body the minute she sees Amelia appear on the opposing side of the pool with a nervous glare as Cassidy successfully turns Amy's body away. 

 

"Cassidy?" Dan turns around the minute Amelia arrives at the pool and she watches as Cassie struggles to get Amy away from the pool.

 

"Yes, Dad?" she gives a sweet smile.

 

His nose crinkles at her, "Did you change clothes, _again?"_

 

 _Change clothes?_ Amelia thinks to herself, _Where did that come from?_

 

 _"I.._ guess." Amelia decides to go along with it and takes Dan's hand with hers, "Why don't we go grab lunch, you _must_ be starving." 

 

Dan looks around in confusion and holds a finger up to the wedding planner and gives a sweet smile as he gestures to his daughter. He needed this wedding planner to like him because something tells him that his candidate client will need helping wedding planning and nothing screams American like hiring a gay wedding planner. 

 

"Cass, I'm kinda in the middle of something. Just go grab lunch with Eva." he waves a hand but Amelia isn't having it. 

 

"Okay." she continues speaking but he turns away and it's too late because the minute he turns, he sees her. 

 

Even though it's been at least a decade, he could spot Amy Brookheimer a million miles away. He leans forward a few inches to get a good look at Amy to make sure it actually is Amy and sure enough, it's her and she sees him too.

 

It's the last thing he sees before he stumbles into the pool and Amelia and Cassidy both scream in surprise.

 

Not knowing what to do, Amy pulls herself together as Dan practically crawls out of the pool and inches his way over to her as Cassie stands behind her mother in surprise. 

 

"Hello, Amy" Dan gives a nod as he feels his clothes practically soak and hang heavy on his body.

 

"Hello, Dan." she gives a small wave and throws her hair behind her back nervously.

 

The atmosphere is uncomfortably silent as they both look each other up and down and try to find things to busy themselves with as Amelia practically sprints to the other side of the room.

 

"You're looking. _.well."_ Dan offers which prompts Amy to look away nervously and begin to play with her fingers; trying to distract herself.

 

"And you're wet.. _well I mean,_ you're _clothes_ are wet..and I guess you are too." Amy waves a hand over him.

 

A pool worker breezes behind Amy and she turns just in time to catch the teenage boy, "Can we have a few towels, please?". With a nod of his head, the teenage boy goes and grabs a few towels and hands them to Amy.

 

"Amy." Dan calls Amy back to attention as he loosens his tie and releases a deep sigh, "Is there a reason why you're here. I mean-I haven't seen you in at least..ten or eleven years and you sho-"

 

"Dad." Amelia steps forward with a deep breath, "I can explain why she's here." 

 

Dan's eyes move to Amelia's with a protective glaze as his voice lowers, "You know who this is, Cassidy?" 

 

Amelia nods and takes a deep breath, "That's because I'm Amelia, not Cassidy." she reveals with a deep breath.

 

Dan's jaw drops as his eyes zero in on Amelia in shock, "You're Amelia?" 

 

Amelia nods as Cassidy takes a step next to her, "And I'm _Cassidy._ Not Amelia." 

 

 _What in the actual hell is going on?_ Dan thinks to himself as his eyes dart between Cassidy and Amelia (and Amy hoping that she'll explain what the actual fuck is going on).

 

"We both sent them to the same summer camp without thinking and they switched places on us." Amy combs a hand through her hair as she and Dan exchange a look.

 

"So..I had Amelia with me all this time and didn't even notice it." a look of disbelief washes over his face as everyone nods. 

 

"Come here, kiddo." Dan opens his arms to Amelia who smiles and wraps her arms around his wet frame; ignoring the drips of water being dropped on her face.

 

"Girls, why don't you head upstairs while your Dad and I talk." Amy rubs Cassidy's back and beckons a hand to Amelia as she pulls away from the hug.

 

The two girls nod and make their way into the hotel lobby, turning around and giving their parents a smirk over their shoulders that they believe their parents don't notice (But Amy definitely notices and marvels at how much they resemble their father).

 

"Had I known I was going swimming today I would've dressed for the occasion," Dan grumbles as he seats himself at a pool chair and tugs on his ear; trying to get the water out.

 

Amy bites on her bottom lip and opens a towel for him, "Figures. I never remembered you being the one to enjoy getting your Rolexes wet." she points a finger at the large watch wrapped around his wrist. 

 

 _"Shit!"_ he notices the water floating in the watch and scrambles to pull it off, "This'll cost a fortune to fix," he complains to himself.

 

Amy hates herself for thinking this far but, he looks good. Like really good. He had always been a charming little shit back in the day when they first met but, it seems that time was acting as a friend to him because while grey hair and salt and pepper beards made most people look like Grandpa..oddly enough it made him look like a bottle of fine wine.

 

"So, how have you been?" Dan raises an eyebrow at Amy as she adjusts her long-sleeved shirt-dress. 

 

"I've been okay." she shrugs nonchalantly, "Just...working and raising Amelia." 

 

Dan nods at that as he removes his jacket and discards it onto the pool chair.

 

"What about you?" Amy tries, "Are you still working with Ben and Kent?" she offers, trying to have a somewhat comfortable conversation in an uncomfortable situation.

 

He takes the towel from her hands and wipes his hair with it, "Yeah, we're still doing business together. We've got a firm right on Wall Street" he informs her with a slight smile coming on his lips.

 

"That's great." Amy musters out with a small nod as she tucks a strand of her hair behind her ear.

 

Dan can tell how nervous she is, he always has. It's like he has some Amy Brookheimer sensor edged deep down in his body that is dusting off the mounds of dust right now as she sits in front of him for the first time in years.

 

"Ames, I know that this isn't ideal but, maybe we could go out for Dinner sometime and talk about what we need to-"

 

"Danny!" a penetrating voice calls for attention from behind both of them.

 

They turn and they're both met with Victoria who walks over with her distinct strut and overly-expensive purse dangling from her arm.

 

"Oh!" she notices Amy on the opposing pool chair, "I didn't realize you two had met already." she claps her hands together in excitement. 

 

"Danny, this is Amy Brookheimer. She's one of the highest in demand political strategist and campaign managers in the country."Victoria crosses over to Dan and plops herself down on the pool chair right next to him.

 

"I was telling Amy that I was thinking her business could use a stronger head of Publicity along with a source of reliable income for her clients who are bound to win elections." Victoria smiles and winks at Amy, "Right, Ames?" 

 

 _How in the fuck did Victoria meet Amy?_ Dan ponders to himself. 

 

"You were going to hire my fiancee?" Dan's eyes blink in disbelief. 

 

Fuck, so Dan was the fiancee Victoria was gushing about, Amy thinks to herself silently as she shakes her head with a forced smile on her lips. 

 

"I had no idea she was your fiancee," Amy admits with large eyes directed towards Dan.

 

Victoria's face freezes as her body tenses and she turns to Dan for answers, "Baby, am I missing something?" 

 

In perfect timing, Cassidy and Amelia both arrive from behind and tap Victoria on the shoulder. When the woman turns and is met with both of the girls, she screams in fear and jumps from the pool bed.

 

"Don't worry, Vick." Cassidy waves her hand, "We didn't know either." she puts a hand on her chest as Amelia smiles sweetly at her.

 

"They never told us either so at least we have that in common." Amelia folds her arms over her chest confidently.

 

Victoria's jaw drops in shock as her eyes dart in between both Dan and Amy in horror. 

 

"Are these your children?" her eyes narrow in on Amy who simply nods in response.

 

"And these are your children as well?" her eyes flash dangerously at Dan who scratches his neck.

 

"I never mentioned that Cass had a twin?" he tries to be funny and lighten the mood but from the way Victoria scowls at him in anger, he can tell she's not in a real comical mood at the moment.

 

"No. It seems you missed that minor yet important detail." she grits out with her arms folded tightly over her chest that Amelia is sure that he boobs are going to burst out of the already bone-tight dress.

 

Amelia and Cassie exchange a knowing look completed with a nod.

 

They thought of it as a job well done.

 

While Dan wanted to kill himself from embarrassment.

 

Victoria wanted to kill those little pains in her ass, known as Cassie and whatever the hell the other one was named.

 

And Amy wants to exclude herself from this narrative.

* * *

 "What in the hell were you two thinking?" Amy paces back and forth as Cassidy and Amelia sit side by side on the couch in the living room of the hotel.

 

"One of you told me that your Dad was expecting me to be here today and I come to find out that the man was looking at me as if I was the Ghost of Christmas Fucking Past." she throws her hands in the air. 

 

Amelia has her head hanging down in shame as Cassidy nervously gnaws on her bottom lip.

 

"Then, on top of all of that. It turns out he's engaged to some barely legal college grad who has the figure of a Skeleton." she throws herself into the single chair with a deep sigh with her head in her hands. 

 

"Why would you do this to me?" Amy mumbles against her hands.

 

"Mom. We didn't know that they were engaged." Cassidy tries with her hands out defensively. Amelia turns to her sister in disbelief with a crinkled nose and an arched eyebrow.

 

Amy looks up from her hands with an eerily similar face and it's enough to make Cassie feel guilty for lying again.

 

"Okay, so we did know. But had we told you then you wouldn't have come." Cassie corrects herself quickly as Amelia runs a hand through her glossy hair. 

 

"Mom, we're really sorry. We didn't know that you guys would meet like that." Amelia speaks up as Amy takes a few more swigs of the drink she made John order for her. 

 

"Oh?" Amy finishes a sip, "Were you planning on having us meet with the same client or something?" she accuses them and it's the girl's silence that makes Amy groan in disbelief again.

 

"Girls!" she jumps to her feet, "Why would you do this? The switch, I can get over..but setting up your Father and I when he's already taken is unacceptable." she moves the hair from falling in her face. 

 

Amelia and Cassidy both nod sadly as a stern knock is heard on the door. John scrambles in from the master suite to open the wooden door down the long hallway.

 

"Mom. Victoria is awful." Amelia informs her, "She's only after Dad and his money and..we can't let that happen. He'll be miserable with her within a few months." 

 

Amy goes mute as she takes that in and traces the rim of her drink with her index finger.

 

"Then you talk with your father about it. Not trying to set him up with me." Amy gives the two girls a stern look, "Now, I'm sure you two meant well but, your Father and I have _nothing_ in common whatsoever, okay?" 

 

"Okay?" Amy demands again with flared nostrils.

 

"Okay." the girls respond in unison with disappointment flaring in their eyes. 

 

"Ms. Brookheimer. Mr. Egan is outside and he wishes to speak with you." John approaches her with a steady look on his face.

 

 _Lord have fucking mercy, could she ever get a goddamn break?_ She thinks to herself as her eyes widen at the door and she looks at both Cassie and Amelia who look to her for direction.

 

"You two, go to Cass-I mean,  _Amelia's_ room." she points a finger towards the open door at the opposing side of the penthouse suite.

 

The girls quickly close the door behind themselves once they make their way into Amelia's room and Amy stands from the single seat and hands the glass to John who stares at her worryingly. 

 

"I can tell him to kick rocks, ma'am." John offers with a slight smile. 

 

She shakes her head and takes a deep breath, "That won't be necessary. Make sure that my daughters aren't wiretapping our conversation, though." she shakes her head as she makes her way to the door.

 

She takes a few deep breaths as her hand wraps around the knob to steady herself as she feels her nerves begin to tumble around her stomach like a Russain gymnast. 

 

Before she can convince herself to turn away from the door, she swings it open to reveal Dan who stands in the hallway with a fresh set of clothes and no longer dripping wet. 

 

"Can I help you?" she looks him up and down suspiciously.

 

Dan takes a deep breath and strokes his beard, "Yeah. I was wondering about the conversation we had at the pool you know before..all that shit transpired and I was wondering if we could have a chance to talk."

 

"We're talking now." she eyes him suspiciously.

 

She hates the way he laughs, it feels like he's mocking her. That may not even be what he's trying to do but, that's what it feels like to her, and she doesn't like it for one minute.

 

"I meant..over dinner." he offers

 

A breath gets stuck in her throat as she has to clear her throat to release it, "I'm sorry?" she pauses, "As in..just _you and I?"_  she asks for clarification to which he nods slowly and leans against the wall.

 

"We can invite the girls if you want, although I figured you would want a break from all of this." he waves a hand around to signify the whole fucking circus they found themselves in. 

 

A break from all of this shit sounds more appealing than another cocktail or even sex at this point (And lord knows Amy hadn't had that in ages).

 

"I don't know, Dan." she distracts herself by playing with the doorknob, "I don't want to upset your fiancee or anything." she shakes her head.

 

"She's understanding." Dan waves a hand down the hall, "She'll get it."

 

"Something tells me she won't." Amy gives him a 'get-real' look. She wasn't the same doe-eyed twenty-five-year-old he swept off her feet ages ago, she was a grown ass woman who knew how men operated and how to handle herself.

 

"Well. It's an offer at least, I'm not going to let a situation where Cassie and Amelia are separated happen again." he shrugs his shoulders and turns away.

 

She lets him but for some strange reason, her instincts take over.

 

"Dan." she hears her voice call back out.

 

He turns back towards her with a raised eyebrow as she takes a deep breath.

 

"I'll think about it." she looks him in the eye and gives him a slight smile.

 

She hates the way his dimples come onto his face when his face breaks out into a smile.

 

"Don't overthink it, Ames." he offers and with a toothy smile that's all charm and bright white teeth which makes her want to punch him square in the face.

 

Did he have to be so handsome? 

 

And what the fuck did she get herself into now? 


	6. She's a Motherfucking Woman, Baby.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> She had an idea as to why Dan had a thing for Victoria. There was no doubt that the girl (Amy doesn't really feel comfortable calling her a woman) was drop-dead gorgeous. She had legs for days and curly Brunette waves that only a true starlet from Hollywood's Golden Era could pull off. Physical attributes aside, Amy knew she had a hint of craziness submerged at her core and she knew that Dan was all about that. 
> 
> He was always weird like that. He liked the edge of suspicion with women. Not knowing whether or not they'll either kiss or punch him was always a game Dan enjoyed playing with his women. Unlucky for him though, Amy got sick and tired of that game as she grew and didn't hesitate to sign those damn divorce papers at first chance.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, so, so sorry for the delayed update!
> 
> Thanks to every single one of you guys who have stayed with me throughout this entire story process and being patient with me. My main goal is to make this story the best it could be for you all!
> 
> Also, Veep returns in a few days and I'm SERIOUSLY excited! I'll be in New York during the cast's final press tour to attend a few interviews they'll be in (I'm seeing Reid at AOL Build and Good Morning America along with Anna and I'm seriously excited!). Because of this and the show returning on Sunday, there's a good chance the next chapter will be delayed since we'll all be watching the show, lol.
> 
>  
> 
> No worries, this story will be finished one day, though! 
> 
> Thank you from the bottom of my heart for supporting me in a way I've never been supported before, I love each and every single one of you guy!

> _I'm a motherfucking woman, baby, alright_
> 
>   
>  _I don't need a man to be holding me too tight_

**_\- 'Woman' Kesha_ **

* * *

 

"I'm sorry." Victoria puts her hands on her hips firmly, "But I'm not staying here with your twin children, both of whom you barely told me about, and your ex-wife." she screeches in Dan's face the following afternoon.

 

"Vick, this isn't an ideal _situation_ we're in," Dan explains as he paces across the floor of the hotel room and slides on his suit jacket, "I'm only doing this for the girls." he reasons

 

She folds her arms over her chest as she groans, "Well newsflash Einstein-your girls aren't as innocent and sweet as you think." 

 

Sure, there was a solid ninety percent chance the girls set him and Amy up to both be at the same exact spot at the same exact time in hopes of reconciliation. But who could blame them? They were just ambitious little eleven-year-olds with the brains and determination of both their parents. 

 

As upset as he should be..he's oddly not that upset? Don't get him wrong, he's still humiliated that he made a complete and utter ass of himself by falling into the goddamn pool like a fucking dumbass in front of Amy but, part of him was..surprisingly okay with seeing her again?

 

Not in like a romantic way but, in a _'dealing with our shit from eleven years ago'_ type of way. 

 

The last time he actually saw her, she was literally (And he's not exaggerating on this one) red in the face, screaming at him and telling him to ' _Pack his shit and go somewhere that didn't involve her or her children'._

 

Just thinking about the fight itself was enough to give him a fucking migraine and lord knows that it wouldn't be as painful as the current conversation he was having with Victoria. 

 

"Vick. Calm down." Dan turns and gives her a sympathetic look, "You can't get mad at the kids. They're literally children." he reminds her much to her dissatisfaction.

 

"That's what _you_ think, Dan." Victoria protests with a stomp of her foot, "Every time you've left Cassandra- _or Abigail_ with me, they've berated me and practically called me a whore." 

 

 _"Whore?"_ Dan chuckles which earn him a death glare from Victoria which is enough to put a lid on the emotion, "Did they explicitly say that?"

 

Victoria looks around for a moment in silence, _"No."_

 

 _"_ So how do you know that that's what she meant? I can guarantee you, she doesn't even know what the word means let alone how to say it." he beckons an open palm to her. 

 

"Jesus fucking Christ! Can you listen to me for one moment?" she puts a hand on her chest dramatically as her foot stomps so hard Dan's debating on dropping a security deposit on the room.

 

"I am listening." he protests as he drops his folders on the table, "What do you want?" he demands 

 

He watches as Victoria gives him a pout and slides herself onto his lap, bringing him in close as she wraps her arms around his neck.

 

"I want us to go back to planning our wedding." she runs a hand through his hair, "And I want you to stop paying attention to your ex-wife and to me, your new wife." she smiles at him all giddy and bows and rainbow-like which is an ultimately a turn-off. 

 

He wasn't usually keen on the idea. If anything, this whole engagement thing was really Victoria's idea. She literally did most of the heavy lifting in terms of the actual proposal (Dropped hints, Booked them a table at the nicest restaurant for the evening and even went out and bought a new dress).

 

Well really, she took his card paid for everything (including the ring) and left it on his dresser which was enough for him to get the hint of what it is she wanted that night.

 

"Vick. About the wedding-" he starts but her eyes flash dangerously; indicating she knows exactly where he's trying to go with this. She was like a bloodthirsty hyena in that way, she could sense danger anywhere (and nine times out of ten, she herself was the actual danger).

 

"You're not dumping me for your _kids,_ are you?" she warns slowly to him as if he's a kindergartner.

 

"No." he shakes his head and takes a deep breath as he combs a hand through his hair, "But maybe, we can postpone the wedding for a tad bit."

 

Her jewel-like eyes go round at him in disbelief as her grip loosens from his neck, "I'm _sorry?"_ she removes herself from his lap and takes a firm stand in front of him, "You want to postpone our wedding so I can sit around and be Becky Housewife while you play house with your ex-wife and offspring?"

 

He groans as he stands up and follows Victoria at the heels of her upcoming meltdown. At this point, he'd rather deal with a screaming eleven-year-old versus a very jealous and pissed off twenty-three-year-old (and that was saying a lot coming from him).

 

"Will you calm down?" he locates his briefcase on the opposing side of the room, "No one is breaking up with you, okay?" 

 

Victoria's chest rises as she eyes him and down in annoyance, "Fine." she huffs out and bumps into Dan purposely as she crosses the room.

 

He watches as she pulls on her white coat and bends over to grab her purse, much to his confusion.

 

 _Christ, was she leaving now?_ he thinks to himself as Victoria gussies herself up in the mirror placed right at the flat screen television.

 

"Where are you going?" his hands are on his hips with his chest rising; the adrenaline of their arguing fueling his brain.

 

"I have a hair appointment that _you_ paid for already." she points a finger at him, "Maybe I should dye my hair blonde so you'd actually have some interest in me, huh?" she teases him with a stern tone that's enough to further energize the headache battering away at his skull.

 

She stands still in the doorway, waiting for his response. From the look on her face and her body language, he can tell she's waiting for him to encourage her to return so they can talk about whatever it is that's bothering her. Between the relentless tantrum and a sudden desire of wanting to be alone, he doesn't say anything. He just waves a hand and bids her farewell for the Afternoon.

 

From the look on her face, he can tell that she's angry, to say the least. 

 

Which makes no sense to Dan what so ever, how could you be angry when you were going to a free Spa Day to twiddle your thumbs?

 

* * *

She was nervous as fucking shit. 

 

There had been many times in her life when she should've been nervous-giving her Valedictorian speech, her first ever job interview, her first ever election, and her first date with Dan. Although the first three things on that list were far more important than some stupid date with Dan at an Italian Restaurant.

 

But as she made her way to the conference room with James at her heels, she reminded herself who the fuck she actually was. She was Amy Brookheimer, one of the most (if she does say so herself) successful political strategist of her generation and a damn good campaign manager. 

 

So, when she enters the elevator, she takes a deep breath and combs a hand through her hair.

 

"What's the plan today, Ms. Brookheimer?" John asks as the metal doors close in front of them.

 

Amy sighs and adjusts her blazer, "Meeting with Mccloskey now, then I'll head over to the bar..take some time for myself and..do whatever."

 

"Do whatever?" John gives her a pointed look.

 

"Yes, do.. _.whatever."_

 

"Ms. Brookheimer, I feel the need to remind you that your schedule is air-tight."

 

"Yes, John. I know that." she snaps for her compact mirror which he hands to her dutifully. "What's up with you all of a sudden? You've been acting weird since last night."

 

John takes a deep breath as he presses the lobby button with his index finger, "You are meeting with Daniel Egan tonight, Ms. Brookheimer." he reminds her. 

 

 _Shit._ The more and more she heard or thought about seeing Dan again later tonight, the more and more real it became and she wasn't sure she liked that.

 

"Yes, John." she nods earnestly as she touches up her makeup, "I'm aware of that." 

 

"Ms. Brookheimer, may I be quite frank." John questions as the elevator slowly descend down.

 

"Go for it, tell me something I haven't already told myself." she gives him an approving nod which prompts John to take a deep breath and rub his hands on his slacks.

 

"What makes you think that this a good idea? Sitting down with your ex-husband for a glass or two of wine?" John begins speaking enthusiastically, "I don't want you getting yourself into any potential trouble with this man, I don't trust him." 

 

"I appreciate the concern, John, I really do" Amy responds almost instantly, "I'm only doing this whole charade for the girls. If all of this could be revolved around what I wanted to do, I would've had both Cassie and Amelia under my care since the day we split up with Dan far away from us." she spits out more fiercely than she expected. 

 

From the way John's eyes widen, she could tell that her little outburst was a bit harsher on the receiving end of it. She clears her throat and turns towards him with a small smile.

 

"I appreciate the concern, I really do, John." she pats his arm, "But, I'm not the same twenty-five-year-old girl that got wooed by Dan Egan and his boyish charm, I know all of his tricks and flips. Don't worry about me." 

 

She didn't even have to meet with Dan to know how the fucking meeting would go. He'd greet her with a smug smile, try to her (which she would decline), he'd go on and on about the various types of pussy he's been slamming since the day they broke up, all while gloating about what a miraculous job he's done raising Cassidy on his own (as if that's not what she's been doing since their break up).

 

And she wasn't in the mood for it when they were in a relationship and she's definitely not in the mood for it when they weren't in a relationship.

 

"I can't though Ms. Brookheimer." he says sadly, "I have to worry about you." he smiles sadly at her. 

 

Her heart breaks a little bit even more. It was nice having John around. Yes, he and his outburst of protection could be a tad bit overwhelming at times but, it was comforting to know that she and Amelia had someone they could count on at the end of the day. She had hired around the same time she had met Dan for the first time so, he had good reasons to be suspicious. 

 

It doesn't help that the doors swing open and they're given a small amount of time to make themselves not look suspicious as they already look. 

 

 _"Perfect!"_ Victoria groans dramatically, "You're here." her eyebrows arch in aggravation as she thrusts herself into the elevator and lays against the glass wall with a sigh.

 

Fuck. Could everyone just like..not be near her for a good twenty minutes? Was that so hard?

 

 _"Victoria."_ Amy's hands squeeze the silver handle of her Tory Burch purse, trying to still herself.

 

Victoria crosses her arms so they rest directly above her exposed midriff as her eyes gloss over both Amy and John (and Amy cannot stand it for one fucking second). How much of a child can someone be? If you have a problem with someone or something, you act like a woman and speak the fuck up.

 

"How's your day going so far?" Amy offers; trying to start up some conversation.

 

Victoria shrugs her shoulders, "Swell, actually." she gives Amy an acidic smile, "I'm sitting in the elevator with my fianceé's ex-wife and mother of his children." 

 

John intake a sharp breath as he tries to distract himself with the contents of his bag. 

 

She doesn't want this in all honesty. If the girls are right and Dan is getting married to this girl, she wants it to be somewhat tolerable. Not saying they have to be like Demi and Bruce's family where everyone is all happy and jolly and within one accord but, manageable enough to where she feels comfortable with letting the girls in Victoria's sight.

 

 _"Victoria."_ she takes a deep breath and turns towards the girl, "I know that..this is all very confusing for you, I know it is for me but, I just wanted you to know that there's nothing going on between Dan and I." she gives her an assuring nod as John's eyes widen in surprise behind her. 

 

The brunette girl snorts, "Why would I think that?" she tilts her head to the side, "I mean..you got divorced what eleven years ago? Dan's changed since then and I'm sure you haven't."

 

"Excuse me?" Amy's blood springs to life in recoil.

 

"I don't blame him though. Any woman who wears pencil skirts and blouses all day is sure enough to be a raging bitch, at least, that's what Dan says." she uses her smartphone as a mirror as Amy throws a ' _Is she fucking kidding?_ ' look over her shoulder to John who shakes his head in disbelief. 

 

"I'm sorry?" Amy clears her throat for clarification as Victoria simply smirks at her all Satan like. 

 

She had an idea as to why Dan had a thing for Victoria. There was no doubt that the girl (Amy doesn't really feel comfortable calling her a woman) was drop-dead gorgeous. She had legs for days and curly Brunette waves that only a true starlet from Hollywood's Golden Era could pull off. Physical attributes aside, Amy knew she had a hint of craziness submerged at her core and she knew that Dan was all about that. 

 

He was always weird like that. He liked the edge of suspicion with women. Not knowing whether or not they'll either kiss or punch him was always a game Dan enjoyed playing with his women. Unlucky for him though, Amy got sick and tired of that game as she grew and didn't hesitate to sign those damn divorce papers at first chance. 

 

"Dan told me about his crazy ex-wife. How she was a workaholic and this tense little thing that couldn't learn how to calm the fuck down for the life of her. Little did I know that he was talking about you." she smiles to herself.

 

"Well, it's a good thing that his opinion isn't as valuable or expensive as that nose job you've got." the words leave Amy's mouth before she can decide for a calmer, more adult approach. 

 

It's not like she's been waiting to pick a fight with Dan's new chew-toy. Between the girls doing this whole damn switch, her seeing Dan again and actually having to work with Dan again, she was already covered up to her eyes with shit. 

 

"Dan likes it." Victoria's tone is tense and brittle, losing the wave of confidence that ran through her voice. 

 

"Well let me be the first to tell you that Dan or any man's opinion doesn't mean shit but, I wouldn't expect you to know that considering you have the mental capacity of a tenth-grade girl." 

 

Victoria's eyes flash dangerously as the doors slide open, revealing the sleek and pristine hotel lobby. As Amy preps herself to exit the elevator along with John, Victoria presses a button that slides the doors shut. 

 

"You mind opening the door? I have an important meeting to tend to and I do not have the time nor the desire to sit here and go back and forth with you, Victoria." 

 

Victoria snorts and shakes her head, "I know you're jealous of me, Amy. I have the job, the connections and Dan. You can sit here with your pencil skirt and your Blackberry and claim that you're not but we all know that you most certainly are.".

 

John opens his mouth to speak but Amy cuts him off before he has a chance to rip her apart. 

 

"The last time I checked you were the one asking me for a job because you've realized that Daddy's trust fund and Dan's checks can't get you that far. I've gone to college, I have degrees in both Political Science and Public Administration; which I expect you to know since you went on and on about how you've been researching me for the past two years. I have a child and a career that I take care of all on my own so, believe me when I say that a man is the least of my concerns." Amy eyes her up and down.

 

"John, may you press the elevator button?" Amy requests which prompt John to quickly lean forward and press the open elevator doors button which prompts Victoria's expression to go blank.

 

"And while you're at it, I'd go run and ask Dan for your allowance. It seems your top lip filler is deflating like a balloon at a children's party." Amy twists her phone in her hand and exits the elevator without a care in the world; leaving Victoria in her dust.

 

As they begin their walk to the conference room, John hovers over her a bit more than usual, fawning over her with compliments on just how awesome that all was. 

 

"She had it coming, Ma'am. She had no right to say any of that filth to you." John consoles her. 

 

It's like Amy hated women by any means. She just hated women who hated _other_ women. Now, she wasn't a dedicated member of the Emily' List email chain by any means but, she knows how fucking hard it is to be a woman in Washington (And really, a woman in fucking general). So, it angered her to the core whenever she had to deal with bitchy cunts (Exhibit: Victoria) who made it their mission to tear down other women. 

 

"Dan's going to kill me for doing that." she rolls her eyes and chuckles to herself. 

 

Her mind begins to wonder just how much more shit she could've started with her conversation with Victoria but, she's surprised by how much she actually doesn't care. If he gets angry, then he can fucking deal with it like a grown fucking man. 

 

Serves him right, anyway.

* * *

"Where's Mom at?" Cassie's eyes flash around the room as Amelia resides on the couch with a book nestled in her lap.

 

"She had that meeting with McCloskey today," Amelia informs her without taking her eyes off the book. 

 

Cassie runs a hand through her hair and strides over to the couch. "Will you stop reading for a minute, I have something to tell you."  Cassie throws herself on the opposing side of the couch with her eyes burning through the hardcover of Amelia's copy of 'The Great Gatsby'. 

 

“Does Dad know that Mom’s going to be there?” Amelia’s eyebrows raised in suspicion.

 

Crap. Cassie thinks to herself. In the midst of all of the crazy antics they managed to pull, she didn’t actually have time to reveal that tidbit of information to him.

 

” _No_.” Cassie plays with her denim shorts.

 

Amelia pauses for a moment and slams her book shut, “ _No_?” 

 

Cassie rolls her eyes, “I didn’t know we were telling them that part.” she feigns with an innocent look as Amelia jumps to her feet.

 

”You idiot! We’re telling them all the parts!” Amelia slaps Cassie’s arm which is enough for her to flinch in pain.

 

“Well then be clear about that next time!” Cassidy protests as she rubs her arm up in down.

 

”Where’s Dad?” Amelia throws her book to the couch and locates her shoes across the room.

 

”Last time I checked he was in the room.” Cassie points a finger at the door.

 

Before Cassidy could logically explain that he could’ve been gone for all she knew, Amelia sprints out the door and down the hall to their Dad’s hotel room.

 

Against her desire to just relax on the couch, Cassie finds herself chasing down the hall to catch up with her sister in a brisk sprint.

 

By the time she catches up to Amelia, she’s knocking feverishly at the door with a frustrated pout on her lip.

 

”Before you took off, I tried to explain to you that he may have left for his meeting already,” Cassie smirks at Amelia who rustles the doorknob angrily.

 

Amelia throws her hands in the air and sighs, “Well then we need to go.”.

 

Cassie’s eyebrow arches in confusion at her sister.

 

”Go where? To the meeting?”

 

Amelia nods and begins to make her way down the hallway to the elevator in a brisk walk.

 

”Millie. Lose the sense of urgency in your walk, it’s just a meeting.”

 

”That Dad barely knows anything about, imagine his reaction when he walks in and sees Mom there with his client.” Amelia scolds her like it’s evident.

 

“He’ll be fine.” Cassie lies through gritted teeth. She was surprised. Even though Amelia never knew her Dad that well, the few days she spent as Cassie gave her all of the information she needed to know about them.

 

Amelia presses the elevator button and sighs to herself, “You know he won’t be fine.”

 

And crap, she hates to admit it but Amelia is completely right.

 

Again.

* * *

 The minute Dan finds himself entering the meeting with McCloskey, his blood pressure has hit an impossible high.

 

He hated being late. It made him seem lazy and unprofessional (which Dan was the complete opposite of). Not to mention it doesn’t help the fact that Ben and Kent practically rip him a new one the minute his foot passes the threshold.

 

”What the shit, Danny?” Ben’s eyebrows arch dangerously at him, “We’ve been waiting for you like a set of rejected prostitutes on the corner.”

 

”Your absence was found controversial, to say the least.” Kent chimes in from the opposing side of the room with an uninterested groan.

 

Ignoring both of them, Dan inches over to McCloskey and shakes his hand with a sincere smile.

 

”My apologies George, my daughter wasn’t feeling well earlier today.” He lies through gritted teeth.

 

And for some strange reason, that’s what makes Ben and Kent double over in guilt.

 

”Holy shit, is the kid okay?” Ben questions with an actual interest in his voice that Dan has to do a double take.

 

”She’s fine.” Dan eyes him suspiciously as he settles himself in a plush office seat that surrounds the large oak table.

 

”No worries, Dan. I understand.” George gives a noble nod and a warm smile.

 

Poor guy, Washington’s going to chew him up and spit him right the fuck out. Unless he has a Guard Dog (or for lack of a better term, Bitch) as his Campaign Manager then he’ll be on the ground by the week following reelection.

 

“Gentleman, let’s jump into this shop before it takes off from the dock.” Kent claps his hands and drops a folder on the desk proudly.

 

And with that, they’re strategizing and talking shop about their plan for McCloskey’s re-election.

 

Kent goes through the trials of his mathematical statistics (Breaking down what percentage of Californians find McCloskey's former tactics useful and what percentage find them ineffective), Dan proposes him a Social Media campaign that'll be enough to have the whole city of San Fransisco with post notifications on for both McCloskey and his wife, and Ben throws in a few words of wisdom here and there. 

 

"Since we are interested in backing you a hundred percent, George, eventually we'll need to meet with your Campaign Manager to tie up any loopholes the media just so happens to find through this particular transaction," Kent speaks with his hands as he takes a seat next to Dan at the conference table. 

 

George nods enthusiastically and looks at his watch, "She should be here at any moment. We've been keeping our whole partnership under the table because of her whole plan that I already spoke with you guys about." 

 

"Making it seem like you're without a Campaign Manager to your opponents and the media? I applaud that move actually." Dan gives an approving nod, "It makes you seem a bit looser.". 

 

"And without a stick up your ass." Ben chimes in. 

 

"George? I'm so, so sorry that I'm late." A door slams behind Dan's back and he hears the sound of footsteps rapidly approaching George who sits at the head of the table, "My daughter wasn't feeling well and I had to handle that." the blonde woman gives George a handshake as Dan turns his body around and his jaw drops. 

 

Part of him wants to believe that his mind is playing tricks on him. There's no way that George's Campaign Manager was Amy..not _his_ Amy. Okay, well Amy wasn't necessarily his anymore but, she was technically the only Amy he knew. From the way Ben's heavy-lidded eyes go round in awe along with Kent's robotic face stuck in a state of surprise, he can tell this is far from a mind trick. 

 

"No worries, Amy." George gives a smile that's all perfect teeth and charm, "Gentleman, allow me to introduce you to Amy Brookheimer, my Campaign Manager."

 

Amy bites her bottom lip in silence as the three men look at her in complete and utter awe. It was like they saw a fucking Ghost or something.

 

George clears his throat to defeat the awkward silence in the room as he pulls out a chair for Amy to sit in next to Ben. 

 

"I'm sorry, have you all met before?" George waves a hand around all of them which is enough to prompt the group to exchange looks.

 

Dan clears his throat and scratches his neck, "Amy and I both knew each other from a while ago.." he waves a hand as if she's not his ex-wife and the mother of his daughters. 

 

Ben and Kent's heads whip towards Amy for her response. 

 

"That's all. And I know Ben and Kent from a mutual coworker." Amy gives a warm smile and adjusts herself in the office chair as Dan watches her every move.

 

Was she serious? Sure, he tried to act all cool, calm and collected (It wasn't much of an act, that's what he was) when she walked in and the minute he tries to downplay her importance in his life, she has the nerve to just 'That's all' him? As if he didn't put a ring on her finger and knock her up with two kids?  

 

The rest of the meeting itself is complete and utter hell for him due to the fact that he lost both of his coworker and client's approval and attention to Amy who carries the meeting on her usually tense shoulders with complete ease and grace. 

 

And Dan hates every minute of it.

 

* * *

 

"When were you going to tell me that we both had McCloskey as a client?" Dan's nostrils flare as he pulls her aside in the lobby.

 

Amy laughs without even thinking and blinks her eyes at him, "I literally found out yesterday, do you seriously think that I planned all of this up?" she questions him with a 'Get Real' look that's enough to anger him further. 

 

"And you decided to not tell me about any of this?" he challenges her and she has to take the deepest breath known to mankind to keep her cool before she explodes on him and anyone within the radius in this damn lobby.

 

But then, her mind goes to Victoria and that fucking smirk she gave Amy whenever she tried to belittle Amy and needless to say...she's done holding back.

 

"What about you? You deciding to tell your chew toy that I'm a psychotic bitch?" she challenges him back with her arms folding across her chest.

 

Dan's brow furrows and his tone feigns confusion, "Psychotic bitch? Ames, that doesn't even sound like me." he reaches his hand out to stroke her arm but she flinches away from him, getting angrier and angrier with every passing minute he stares at her like she's a mad woman.

 

"Amy!" she furiously demands, "My name is _Amy."_

 

"Ames." he starts but her scowl and flaring nostrils is enough for him to correct himself with the full version of her name, "I never even mentioned you to Victoria."

 

"Bullshit, Dan." she gripes at him, "You talk shit more than an insecure twelve-year-old girl you fucking prick." her face flares in red. 

 

Dan gives a panicked smile to an elderly couple who raise eyebrows at the two of them and turns back to her with gritted teeth

 

"Amy, I am beginning you for the love of God. Stop embarrassing us in the middle of the damn lobby." he tries but she's not having any of it. 

 

Embarrassing? God, did he even know what the fuck that word meant? Or how it fucking felt.

 

The past twenty-four hours have been nothing but embarrassing from start to finish.

 

"You want to know what's embarrassing, Dan? Having your barely legal fiancée try to insult me with her one-sided view of our relationship back then. If that's what you've told her then what it is you tell Cassie? How much of a psychotic bitch I am?"

 

"No, Amy! Not at all." 

 

She snorts, "You've never really been one for lying convincingly." she eyes him up and down with a dismissive wave.

 

She brushes past him and towards the elevator and presses the button as he trails behind her like a lost fucking puppy. Had she not known the asshole that laid underneath that perfectly manicured appearance, she'd almost feel sorry for him. But she doesn't feel any ounce of sadness for him whatsoever.

 

"Amy. Please, let's just talk about all of this." he pants with his hands firmly on his hips. 

 

"No." she shakes her head, "I'm done talking to you, Dan. I've gone eleven years without doing it and I'll go eleven more without hesitation. Remember, it was me who dumped your sorry ass to the curb no matter what it is you try and make your other chew toys believe." she angrily presses the elevator button again as he stands there dumbfounded. 

 

The metal doors slide open revealing Amelia and Cassie whose eyes go wide when they see both she and Dan.

 

"Mom, Dad! How'd the meeting go?" Cassie steps forward with a bright grin directed at both of her parents.

 

"Awesome, your father made a complete ass of himself." she ushers Cassie to take a few steps back as she joins the girls in the elevator. 

 

Mom? Are you okay?" Amelia tries with a careful tone but Amy simply clears her throat and presses a kiss on both of the girl's head with a gaze directed towards Dan.

 

She was tired of the humiliation. She was tired of the constant having to prove herself to this egotistical perfectly manicured scumbag she loved to hate. When she left Dan years ago, she vowed to herself to never be embarrassed by him or any other man no matter what and she was fucking sticking with it. 

 

"Never better." she looks directly in Dan's pitiful eyes and presses the elevator button to shut the doors on him.

 

And that's the best feeling she's had in the last twnety four hours. 

 


	7. Me, Myself & (Oh Yeah) I

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> And that's what makes him sound like himself again. She knows Dan, probably better than he knows himself at times. The perfectly manicured and styled Dan couldn't impress her anymore. She saw right through him like the piece of plastic he is. 
> 
> And no, not glass. Dan probably thought of himself as a steel cut of glass that was sold only in the richest furniture stores of America but to her, he was simply a piece of clear plastic.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow! Second, to last chapter guys, we're almost done!
> 
> Thanks to every single one of you for supporting this story and me, it hasn't been an easy process but you guys make every single struggle and challenge worth it! Also, thanks to those of you who wished me well to meeting Reid in NYC, I greatly appreciate it (And yes, it was everything I dreamt of and more, I posted a travel blog about it on Tumblr!).
> 
> I also wanted to post this chapter BEFORE the new episode on Sunday and my birthday this Saturday, so here we are!
> 
> Anyways, after the premiere of 'Veep', I felt that us Dan x Amy fans needed a little bit of a...cleaner. So, with that being said, please enjoy the penultimate chapter of this story!

 

>  
> 
> _"Me, myself, and I, that's all I got in the end_
> 
>   
>  _That's what I found out_
> 
>   
>  _And it ain't no need to cry, I took a vow that from now_
> 
>   
>  _I'm gon' my own best friend"_

 **-beyonce'** knowles **: 'me, myself & **i'

* * *

 

Did Amy mention that she fucking hated Dan Egan yet?

 

Because in case she hasn't, she'll gladly repeat herself. 

 

She fucking hates Dan Egan.

 

Well, she hates him to a certain degree. As much as she wants to rue the day and time that they were actually together and he embarrassed her more than she would've liked, at the end of the day he gave her both Cassie and Amelia and those are the only things keeping her heart beating at this point.

 

Not saying she would kill herself by any means (he could never have that much power over her) but, it's safe for her to admit that if she didn't have Amelia then life would be strangely difficult.

 

Who else would make her laugh?

 

Who else would greet her at the end of a hard day not worrying whether or not the fucking press blurb was released on time?

 

"Mom. Are you okay?" Amelia's eyes blink in concern the minute Amy settles herself on the couch in the living room of their hotel.

 

Amy blinks, extracting herself from her thoughts, and adjusts herself in the plush couch. 

 

"I'm fine." Amy responds a tad bit too quickly for her liking, "Just.. _thinking_ that's all." she reaches out and rubs Amelia's arm up and down.

 

The door on the opposing side of the room swings open revealing Cassie nervously playing with her hands dressed in one of Amy's faded Penn sweaters. 

 

"Is it okay if I wear this?" Cassidy approaches her with small steps as her eyebrow's arch, "It's freezing in here and I couldn't find a cover." she slides onto the couch on Amy's left side as Amelia shrugs her shoulders and takes a seat on Amy's right.

 

"No worries, baby." Amy ruffles Cassidy's strawberry blonde curls, "It looks good on you." she compliments with a small smile which prompts Cassie to give her a warm grin and snuggle into Amy's side.

 

A moment of silence runs through the atmosphere as Amy takes a deep breath and intakes the atmosphere. After years and years of keeping the goddamn secret from Amelia and trying to submerge it within herself..she finally got what she's been wanting all this time.

 

Just her and her girls. 

 

And fuck dammint if it didn't feel good to finally have it right now after all these years.

 

"I'm sorry about the meeting, Mom." Amelia starts with a small sigh.

 

"Me too," Cassie mumbles against her arm, sending a warm vibration through Amy's bloodstream which jolts her with the energy she didn't know she had any more. 

 

She knew the girls were sorry. It was clear and evident on their little faces that their seemingly fool-proof plan was becoming more and more overwhelming with each step.

 

"It's fine." Amy's chest slightly heaves up and down with each breath, "You girls were just trying to put an end to this... _situation_ we put you two through."

 

"Where's John?" Cassie's eyes dance around the pristine hotel room as she looks up from Amy's arm. 

 

"I gave him the rest of the day off," Amy responds as she kicks her feet up on the coffee table against her better judgment. Usually, she'd scold Amelia for even doing this but, she's fucking exhausted and has had a day in a fucking half..and it's only noon.

 

 "Well, you're not taking a day off, are you?" Amelia's tone is slow and cautious, careful to not set off any bells with her. 

 

"I was going to." Amy turns to Amelia with a slow tone, "I figured that we could hang out tonight-just the three of us while your Dad is..out with Brooke or whatever."

 

"What about the gala tonight? Don't you want to go to that?" Amelia's eyes blink at Amy in confusion. Amy shrugs her shoulders and runs a hand through her hair. 

 

"That's the last thing on my mind right about now." her chest rises up and down as she laughs to herself, "We could walk around the city tonight and have dinner and... _catch up."_

 

From the way Amelia raises an eyebrow at her, she can tell that it sounds like she's lost her goddamn mind. 

 

Amy's a workaholic. If she's not sleeping, eating or with her kid, she's holding a meeting with her team discussing and debriefing the latest campaign strategies. Being pregnant didn't store here-hell, having and raising a kid couldn't even stop her. If anything, she'd carry Amelia during her meetings for as long as she could and pass her off to John whenever it was time to get the nitty gritty done.

 

"But that's boring." Amelia tears her away from her deep thought.

 

Amy's head whips towards Amelia's in surprise. It's not like it shocked her by any means, Amelia's been privy to the uncensored, unfiltered world of politics her entire life. 

 

"What Millie _means_ is that you've been so stressed out for the past few days and that you should reward yourself by getting dressed up and going out." Cassie plats a warm hand on Amy's warm with an understanding nod that makes it seem Cassie is actually Amy's mom and telling her to get back into the dating world.

 

"I want to spend time with you two. At least before you and your Dad go back home." Amy bids as if it's obvious but the girls aren't having any of it.

 

"Mom, you have to go." Amelia sighs dramatically, "It's the perfect networking opportunity for you, especially before the elections. What will it look like if one of the most powerful women in DC isn't there?" she challenges Amy who simply shakes her head and rolls her eyes. 

 

"They'll think whatever they want to think." Amy tucks a strand of her hair behind her ear, "Girls if this is another part of your plan to get your father and I together then forget it, that ship has sailed long ago." she reaches her hand down to grab the abandoned remote from the floor.

 

"This isn't apart of the plan!" Cassie protests which prompt Amy to turn to Amelia for further clarification.

 

"It's not apart of the plan." Amelia gives an earnest shake of her head.

 

The problem was that she wanted to go but, she didn't want to face Dan yet again but this time in a public appearance along with them without a doubt arrival of Victoria and the rest of DC's hottest staffers and candidates all in one setting. 

 

"Girls, I appreciate your concern...I really do but, I can't-I don't even have a _dress."_ she feigns as she stands from the couch and crosses over to the kitchen area; she needs a minute to herself to breathe.

 

Cassidy springs to her feet along with her sister as they inch over to Amy with small footsteps. 

 

"We can go get you one, Mom. We're in New York." Amelia states like it's obvious as she waves a hand around the hotel room frantically.

 

Amy thinks to herself and taps her fingernails against the marble counter.

 

 _"John."_ the words fly out of her mouth before she realizes it, trying to find a way to put off going to the damn event, "I can't go because...John can't help me find my dress." she rambles.

 

The girls exchange a look and eye her up and down with small smiles painting on their faces.

 

"We can go." the respond with eerily similar smiles and similar tones that it almost forces Amy to do a double take and wonder whether or not she's face to face with Dan Egan's spawn or her own.

 

Maybe the girls had a point? Between actually seeing Dan for the first time in ages to having a run in with his fiancee, it felt like the world slowly caving in around and her and the only option she had left was to scream into the night (But, she had already done that plenty of times and it wasn't helping as much as she would've liked). 

 

Who knows, maybe there would be a tall, dark, handsome Strategist at this event that could give her some company (Who wouldn't run for the hills when they found out that she's the mother of two eleven-year-old twin girls). 

 

The thought of Motherhood wasn't exactly an aphrodisiac to a majority of the men she stumbled across. 

 

"So...can we go shopping?" Amelia tries again after studying Amy's face for a while. 

 

She wants to say no so bad while she also wants to say yes. She wants to stay at the hotel and indulge in some Vodka and Ice Cream as she watches one of her favorite films. Yet, she's in the mood to get dressed up and out of this depressive fog she's found herself steering in.

 

 _"Fine."_ she dutifully agrees with a dramatic sigh, "We'll go find me a dress." 

 

 Amelia claps her hands excitedly as Cassidy's fist pumps the air with a signature Egan smirk.

 

"I know the perfect place!" Cassie's voice bubbles in excitement.

 

Shit, this was going to be interesting. 

* * *

"Where the fuck is Amy?" Ben's nostrils flare at Dan as he approaches the table.

 

Annoyed, Dan tears his eyes away from the totally sexy red head he was speaking to and gives Ben a look that says _'I'm busy, fuck off.'._

 

"Not here." Dan grits out while giving Ben a strained smile.

 

God, could he have just one moment of silence to himself? If he wasn't with the kid, then he was with Victoria (Who managed to take every peaceful moment and turn it into a stressful one at that) and he was well past exhausted of this lifestyle.

 

"I'm well aware, Tall Ass. Now where the fuck is she?" he demands again as the woman next to Dan begins to look at the two men in interest. 

 

He bids the woman a quick finger indicating he'll only take a second with Ben as the older man pulls Dan to the side with flaring nostrils and a bright red face.

 

"Can't you see I'm in the middle of something?" Dan angrily defends himself because he's actually right in the middle of getting that woman's phone number and from her chest size to her position as one of the head writers at the Huffington Post. 

 

"Cut the shit, Danny Boy. I'm not being an accomplice to this hundred woman slaughter you're trying to pull here." he scolds Dan as if he's a fucking teenage boy who got caught with his dick in his hand.

 

As much as Ben would like to scold at him, he's a grown fucking man whether he likes it or not. A grown fucking man with the right to fuck or fluff whoever the fuck he wants, whenever he wants. Not to mention the fact that whoever it is Dan chooses to fuck is his business and his business only.

 

"This is coming from the man who slept with his doctor during his heart attack recovery while married to his doctor from his previous heart attack." he rolls his eyes which prompts Ben to swat at him. 

 

"Unlike you, I fucked in private behind closed doors!" Ben whisper-shouts at him, "You're fucking these women wide open for the rest of us to see. You're bargaining a livestream porno in here." he waves a hand around the crowded room of sharply dressed politicians and strategists. 

 

Dan groans and adjusts his tie, "You'd be so lucky." 

 

Then Kent arrives in a frenzy with his steely eyes zoning in on them like they're like last fucking pie chart in the goddamn world. 

 

"I'm assuming you asked him about Amy already?" Kent turns to Ben as if Dan's not standing right there.

 

Ben grumbles and waves a dismissive hand in the air, "No Kent, I'm asking him what time the goddamn Sopranos marathon starts tonight, I've been waiting for a moment to start the show." he gives Kent an eye roll as he waves down a waiter to bring him yet another drink.

 

"Sarcasm in this situation is not necessary yet keeping down the flow of this entire de-"

 

"Stop speaking in cliffhangers and tell me why the fuck everyone is shitting themselves over Amy not being here." Dan furiously demands as he looks over his shoulder to make sure Gretchen or Giselle or whatever the fuck that woman's name was is still there-lucky she is.

 

"Amy's presence is being requested by almost every single attendee of this party," Kent speaks slowly

 

"Yeah, no shit, Sherlock," Dan grumbles

 

"If Amy shows up tonight then McCloskey's approval ratings will hit the roof and will be a guaranteed winner of his state's election," Kent informs Dan.

 

In what world did that make sense? Why would the presence of Amy Brookheimer (Of all fucking people) help a candidate win reelection? Sure, Amy's talented but he wouldn't go as far as stating that she's a winning charm to every election.

 

"Well, he'll just have to be mediocre for the night. She's not coming and there's nothing we can do about." Dan protests like it's obvious as Ben sighs dramatically and takes a lasting sip of the dark liquor nestled in his hand. 

 

"Do what you've been wanting to do for the past ten years and call her you manicured idiot!" Ben grits his teeth at him dangerously as Dan taps his foot impatiently against the hardwood floor. 

 

He did not want to call Amy by any means. What was there to call her about? Yes, she looked..alluring in that pencil skirt like she used to (But even more because the curves from having the girls all those years ago were stuck on her for life) and she was painfully ignoring him the entire fucking time. 

 

"Why don't you call her? Seems like she's the only kid you've given a shit about." he challenges Ben as Kent's head is turned the other way with a stunned surprise in his eyes.

 

 

"That won't be necessary." Kent's monotone voice adds an inch of energy.

 

"Thank you, Kent." Dan claps his hands because finally, someone's starting to fucking get it. 

 

Then Ben's eyes widen in surprise and Dan feels like the odd man fucking out and he doesn't like it. Not for one fucking second.

 

And then he sees it.

 

And he'd be a fucking liar if he were to say that he's not slightly aroused from her entrance through the grand doors. And from the way a majority of the men in the room react to her walking around the room like she owns the goddamn place..he can tell he's not the only one. 

 

Her usual arrow straight hair is in bouncy waves as she runs a hand down the sides of her matte black gown with sheer cutouts, a daring split, and a v-neck so deep..it gives Dan a surge of panic in his blood. 

 

"Fuck me, when the fuck did Amy grow up?" Ben turns to Dan for answers but Dan finds himself dumbfounded in response.

 

"Beats me, last time I checked she still wore pencil skirts for comfort." Dan's eyes widen in disbelief as he watches a tall man stop Amy in her tracks and strikes up a conversation with her.

 

He doesn't even think twice as he strides to the opposing side of the room to save Amy once and for all. 

 

It's not like he's jealous by any means. It's just that..he knows Amy and no matter how sexy and daring she might dress, she didn't like being picked and prodded by grown men all night without her consent. And from the bloodthirsty look in this man's eyes, he can tell that this man is looking for more than just picking. 

 

He approaches Amy from behind, so she won't have a chance to escape and holds a finger up to the mysterious man.

 

"Would you mind if I had a minute with Ms. Brookheimer." he all but demands instead of asking like he normally would.

 

Understandably so, the guy looks a little teed off at Dan but, who gives a shit. He's known Amy for the longest so by default, he wins this round.

 

When Amy turns and is met with Dan...her face caves in a weird way.

 

A way that's one-half relief and the other half....tense at him being within the same inciting of her. But, she can get over that, Dan figures. From across the room, it looked like the man was a cough away from feeling Amy up. He gets it though, with Amy looking all delectable and lush, it's hard to stay away.

 

But at the same time, he doesn't care how good she looks..unless she fucking says so, all hands are to be off and away from her. 

 

"You look.. _.insane."_ his eyes rake over her womanly curves and he scolds himself when his eyes are stuck on her remarkable cleavage a tad too long for his liking. 

 

Amy's jewel-like eyes widen at him like she's done something wrong and frantically looks around the room self-consciously, "I look ridiculous, huh? God, I tried to tell the girls that this was just not my style and it's not me but they're just so goddamn-"

 

Pause.

 

"The girls picked out this dress?" he points at the matte black material as Amy takes a deep breath and nods earnestly with her face flaring in a red blush.

 

Then an unintentional smirk breaks across his face. No wonder this dress seemed like it was straight out of a Dan Egan fantasy or some shit, there was no doubt in his mind that this dress was all Cassidy's choosing and Amelia's convincing. 

 

God, those two were going to be a set of troublemakers the older they got and for some strange reason, Dan can't wait to see it.

 

"Kids got good taste then, huh?" he wiggles his eyebrows at her which causes a small smile to break onto her lips. 

 

"Guess so." her eyes look into his eyes and for the first time that whole night, they finally share eye contact and it's so impactful that Dan feels his arm hair's stick up in response.

 

Then they go mute.

 

Just the two of them exchanging looks and taking in each other's presence and he doesn't hate it. He'd rather have this then Amy spitting her feminist fury at him in public any day of the week and for a moment, it's like when they first met all those years ago.

 

He was wearing one of his best Tom Ford suits (now he was styled in Prada) and she was wearing a careful yet elegant Navy Blue dress that held on to her body for dear life as her hair was pulled back into a bun.

 

He sees the exact moment the realization hits her body and she's thinking to herself, _'Fuck! This is Dan I'm speaking to. Abort mission, abort mission'_ and her shoulders threaten to tense up as she tries to still her now somewhat rapid breathing. He would be lying if he was saying that he didn't particularly enjoy her reaction. He always enjoyed knowing that he had an effect on Amy to knock the socks off her feet when she least expected it.

 

"I have to go." she holds a hand up and awkwardly looks around the room for an out, "Campaign stuff. You get the picture." 

 

"Considering the fact that we're technically working on the same campaign, I think it would be helpful if I tagged along." he sets himself by her side as she tries to stride away from him.

 

She pauses in her tracks and her eyes flash dangerously at him, "Tagalong? What are you a leech?" she eyes him suspiciously as he grins down at her.

 

He chooses to ignore that wisecrack at his expense because he's only doing this to help her in all honesty. Sure, he could sit back and watch her score every goal she tries but, an even bigger part of him wants to be one of the reasons why. There's no doubt in his mind that Amy is talented at what she does but, that's why they were such an unstoppable team because of his talents too.

 

"Look. There's no doubt in my mind you could hit a home run with any curveballs these fuckers try to throw at you. But with me by your side like old times? We could have this election's balls in the palm of our hands." he turns and faces her head on.

 

He sees the wheels turning in her head. His Amy-sensor is telling him that she's weighing her possible choices: Either fly solo or co-pilot with Dan and the anticipation kills him. It's not like they're blushing virgins at working together, they've always worked better as a unit regardless. And if Amy cares about the election like Dan knows she does, there's no way she'll deny a chance at increasing the odds of them winning this election.

 

"About time you realize how good I am without the weight of you holding me down." Amy takes a glass from the waiter passing by them and nestles the glass 

 

He opens his mouth to respond with a witty one-liner because that's what they do. They pull each other's legs all day just from them to fuck all night and while yes, the end to that sentence seems to be out of the window, that doesn't mean they can't pull each other's legs like old times. 

 

"So. What do you say?" he nudges her gently, "Butch and Sundance?"

 

And that's what makes her break into that bright, joyous smile that he forgot how much he missed until it's right in front of him and it fills him with this warm pit at the heart of his body that makes him feel all warm and tingly inside for the first time in probably ever.

 

"Fine." she keeps her eyes down as she pulls herself together, "Just..try not to fuck any heavily medicated wives of Senators we happen to run into." she throws in for good measure which prompts him to sigh.

 

He knows she means well.

 

At least, he hopes she does.

* * *

"Excellent job tonight if I do say so myself." Dan raises his glass in the air and gives her a signature smirk which prompts her to pick up her glass and clink it with his.

 

"Part of the reason being me if I do say so myself." Amy shrugs her shoulders as she leans back and takes a lasting sip of the wine.

 

Dan simply laughs at that and nods his head earnestly, "Just like old times. If I do say so myself." 

 

God, she hates it when he's right in even the slightest. It did feel like old times, in all honesty, both of them, side by side, kicking all kinds of political ass and raising hell in whatever room they managed to walk into together. 

 

It's not like when they split though it impacted her work life greatly. If anything, it helped her more than she would've thought. Working with Dan was great and all; she knew what she was getting into and what to expect whenever they worked together and because of that they worked together well.

 

So when his phone rings off the hook for the almost millionth time that night-she's everything but surprised. 

 

it's worth seeing the look of irritation flush upon his face as he sees the smartphone vibrate to life with a loud ring and bright lights illuminating the screen. 

 

Dan's not her problem anymore. She dumped him because he was a problem she just couldn't bear dealing with anymore. 

 

"You gonna get that?" she teases him with a mocking tone as she plays with the wine glass in her hands.

 

He silently panics and shakes his head furiously as he grabs ahold of his phone and furiously taps his phone against the screen, "It's just.. _.work."_ he feigns but Amy's not having any of it. 

 

"Funny. I didn't know you referred to your fiancee as ' _work'_ " she laughs to herself as her eyes dance around the upscale bar and her eyes land on the television hanging right at the bar counter.

 

Dan grumbles as he texts on his phone with an irritated look on his face, "She's just..pissed about something that I can't be bothered with right now." he waves a dismissive hand as he texts furiously on his phone and places his phone upside down on the glass table. 

 

And that's what makes him sound like himself again. She knows Dan, probably better than he knows himself at times. The perfectly manicured and styled Dan couldn't impress her anymore. She saw right through him like the piece of plastic he is. 

 

And no, not glass. Dan probably thought of himself as a steel cut of glass that was sold only in the richest furniture stores of America but to her, he was simply a piece of clear plastic. 

 

"Is she okay with you being with me right now?" Amy tries, already knowing the answer at the back of her head.

 

Any woman (Especially one with Dan Egan as her partner) would absolutely despise and detest at the idea of him spending time with any other woman beside themselves in a personal setting. And no, it's not fucking jealously that's the reason why it's more so knowing who it is your dealing with.

 

Dan was never really a 'friend' kind of guy. Sure, he had a few buddies from Upstate that he would typically meet with for a few beers while they were dating but, his relationships with women were always for one thing and one thing only. 

 

Sex.

 

And from the way he reacts to Victoria's persistent attempts of getting into contact with him, she can tell he hasn't changed one bit.

 

"She's fine with it." Dan gives a shrug and plays with the rim of his glass.

 

Bullshit.

 

"Didn't know she was the understanding type." Amy teases as she pulls out her phone to check on the girls who were in Eva's care back at Dan's house.

 

He leans forward and plucks the phone out of Amy's hand which only infuriates her and prompts her to releases a complaining moan.

 

"What the hell was that for?" Amy's arm automatically reaches across the table to retrieve her phone but Dan raises it over his head, suspending Amy of any chance to get her fucking phone back which further infuriates her.

 

"We came here to talk," Dan informs her with a slow tone.

 

"I know that but, you're sitting here receiving text after text from your barely legal fiancee and I have work to do." 

 

That probably stung. And she doesn't give a fuck, it's time he takes a few stingers like a big boy.

 

"Checking in on the girl's for the millionth time in the past few minutes doesn't count as work, Ames. Relax." 

 

And of course, he would say that he never got it. He never could get it.

 

"You asshole." she punches his arm swiftly, "You've never understood what it's like to be a Mother, I would've expected you to get an idea since the sex change you got a few years back."

 

She means for it to be a low blow. But when he laughs, she doesn't know why entirely. Did he find that dig at him funny or did he find her funny for trying to be an asshole like him?

 

When he's done laughing and his chest rises up and down, his eyes lock in on hers and it's like the world goes still for a moment. The background noise and chatter die down as they share a look that Amy cannot read for the life of her.

 

She doesn't like this for one moment. Not knowing what's going on in his head. It feels like she's being set up for a million different outcomes, all of which end up with her feeling like a complete and utter idiot as he glows off into the sunset with his chest puffed out proudly.

 

"I'll turn mine off if you turn yours off." he plays with her phone in his hand threateningly which prompts Amy to adjusts herself in her seat.

 

"Is this a new strategy for you to take over my job or some shit?" she can't help the words from leaving her mouth.

 

"No." he replies simply, "We need to talk and I figure we can talk better if you're not breathing over your phone every five minutes." he waves her phone in the air.

 

He is right. 

 

There's still so much for them to talk about. Between the kids and wrangling around the possibility of them actually working together again, now wasn't the best time for the radio silence they've been giving one another for the past decade.

 

So, she dutifully goes along with turning off her phone and focuses on what's important.

 

The safety of her kids. 

* * *

 "God, my heels are fucking killing me." Amy's face contorts in pain as they enter his house sometime around three in the morning. 

 

"Here, you can sit on the couch." Dan directs her to the leather black couch without trouble and lets her fall on her ass onto the couch.

 

He watches as she settles into the couch and kicks her heels off without a care in the world and stretches out her legs onto the coffee table.

 

When she releases a satisfied yet careful moan, he can't help but chuckle to himself as she flares up in embarrassment. This was always his favorite version of Amy. The period of time when she was due to fall asleep at any moment but was determined to stay in fear of missing out on a major political crisis. She blushes easier and is way easier to talk to considering that fact that her body is beginning to shut down against her wish.

 

"Where are the girls?" she surveys the living room and turns to Dan for answers.

 

Dan checks his watch as he yawns to himself, "Fifteen minutes past three. They should be sound asleep right now." he informs her as he makes his way over to the kitchen and listens to her take a few deep breaths from the couch.

 

"God, this flight is going to be a bitch tomorrow." he hears her groan from the couch as he quickly grabs a few water bottles from the fridge and is back in the living room within a few minutes.

 

He takes a seat next to her on the couch and offers her the water bottle without hesitation, "What time do you leave?"

 

She accepts the bottle and begins to twist it open but failing to do so. "Somewhere around noon. Fuck if I know, John has the tickets." she struggles to get the plastic cap off much to his amusement. 

 

"Goddamn fucking cap. Make my life more difficult why don't you-" she grits out in aggravation as she twists the bottle from different angles and positions and still has no such luck. 

 

He takes the bottle from her and twists it open with trouble and hands it back to her. 

 

And she tries, she tries so hard to be annoyed with him. But all it takes is for him to wiggle his eyebrows to cause her to break out into that infectious smile he's found himself lusting after all these years. 

 

"I loosened it for you," she mutters with a dry tone. He laughs at that because of course only he would be able to do something with the help and aid of her but, he's too tired to put up a fight with her and chooses to ignore that comment.

 

"I can go wake up Millie so you guys can head back to the hotel." he offers

 

She shakes her head and yawns like a cat, "No. It's fine." she declines politely, "I want her to remember this time with Cass, at least before we head back home and everything changes again." 

 

Fair enough. 

 

"What about you? You're in no state to drive back to the hotel." he looks her fatigued body up and down which prompts her to self consciously inspect herself with worried glances and self-conscious adjustments.

 

"This sounds like the drunk man's version of _'Baby It's Cold Outside.'"_ she grumbles to herself which prompts Dan to laugh again because Jesus Christ, Drunk Amy is quite hilarious without even knowing it. 

 

When he finishes laughing she speaks back up, "I can have John pick me up, it'll only be a minute." she goes for her pockets but her face falls into a pout when she feels the emptiness of her pockets. Her eyes go wide as she begins to pat her body feverishly, in search of her phone, with small sounds of confusion emerging from her throat.

 

As Dan fishes the phone out of his pocket, he watches as Amy dips a hand underneath her dress and manages to pull out a completely separate phone and he's in such shock and awe that his mouth actually drops for a moment. Of course, she would have a second phone. It only makes sense, she had even had her PDA in her hands when she gave birth to the girls. 

 

He doesn't know what's come over him. It's not until that very moment that he's realized he's actually with Amy right now and the realization of how much he actually missed her crazy, workaholic ass is settling in along with the dust from hiss Amy-sensor kicking into full gear.

 

Maybe that's why he kisses her. 

 

It's not like he was meaning to do it either. It just..happened believe it or not, and he's not entirely mad about it.

 

From the way her lips go still against his for a moment, it's enough for him to pull away with hesitation but when she wraps her arms around his neck and pulls him in..he fucking goes for it like it's their last time ever and they're the only two people on planet earth.

 

It's getting frantic and frenzied, to the point where it feels like one of their many arguments. The explosiveness, the desire to keep going and the adrenaline sweeping through their bodies like there's no tomorrow.

 

He's fully leaning against the couch as she situates herself on top and he lets her have it. If her being on top is what it takes for them to have sex after all these years, he'll fucking take what he can get at this point.

 

"Mom, Dad?" a small voice calls from the distance.

 

Before he can adjust himself to make the scene look not so disturbing for the kid, he feels Amy practically jumping off of him and at attention on her feet with her chest rising up and down like she just finished spriting a mile.

 

"Mill. What are you doing up, baby?" Amy scampers over to the young girl with a guilty smile and overbearing energy.

 

Amelia's face is flushed from the sleep as her eyes dart in between her parents, looking for answers. 

 

"I needed water and... _I'll just go back to sleep."_ she quickly declares and takes off for the staircase, leaving both Dan and Amy in the living room with stress and panic running through their blood.

 

"Ames."

 

"I gotta go." she claps her hands together and retrieves her shoes from the couch.

 

"Ames, let's talk about this." Dan follows her around the room as she quickly dials John's number and paces to keep herself stable from the impending breakdown that's due in another few minutes if she doesn't get a hold of John. 

 

 _"No."_ she declares around her phone and pinches the bridge of her nose, "How could I be so fucking stupid!" she groans to herself with a controlled tone.

 

"You're not stupid, Ames." he tries but she shushes him because apparently she's got John on the phone.

 

So, he sits there and waits for Amy to get off the phone yet again to try and actually talk to her like the adults they were. He was sick and fucking tired of not talking about anything when they were supposed to be talking about something.

 

When she hangs up the phone, she retrieves her items and keeps her head down.

 

"I...I've gotta go." she shakes her head feverishly and makes her way towards the front door but Dan isn't having any of it.

 

"He's not here yet, let's talk until he shows up." he offers.

 

"We've done more than enough talking for tonight." she bitterly responds and takes a firm hold of the door handle, "I'll send John in the morning to pick up Amelia." 

 

"Amy. _Stop."_ he stops the door from opening and looks down at her, "You don't have to be this strong with me. I'm not a client or even a fucking coworker, it's me."

 

"No Dan." her eyes flash and he can tell she really believes in what she's saying, "You're nothing to me. Always have been and always will be." 

 

And with another stern look, she's out.

 

And this has already become the worst day of his life in a matter of thirty minutes.

* * *

 

"Wait, you saw Mom and Dad kiss last night? As in _kissing?_ " Cassidy questions Amelia the following morning as they have Breakfast outside on the patio.

 

"Yeah and then they got all weird when they noticed me." Amelia takes a sip of her Apple Juice. 

 

"Well, that's great then!" Cassie claps excitedly, "We just have to start the next phase of our plan."

 

"Which is?" 

 

"Counting down the days till _Vicky_ moves out and back into her dorm room." Cassie takes a spoonful of her eggs which prompts Amelia to lean forward and hold her hand high for a high five.

 

The more and more she hung out with Cassidy, she realized how much she was going to miss her. It was like their one day of full bonding yesterday was enough to let her know what it was like to have a sister, and she loved it. 

 

She was always jealous of her cousins because they always had siblings. Someone to play with when you were bored and so on and so forth. It was like she was always lonely, and the minute she didn't feel lonely was whenever Cassie entered the room.

 

"What do we do about today though?" Amelia rests her palms on the table, "Mom and I are going back to San Fransisco today and her and Dad aren't exactly in love again."

 

A look of confusion washes over Cassidy's face, "Weren't they making out last night?"

 

 _"Kissing."_ Amelia corrects instantly, "It's more complicated than that too." she shakes her head in disbelief, "More pieces than we think."

 

"They're both _complicated."_ Cassidy rolls her eyes like it's obvious, "Besides, once McCloskey wins the election, Mom and Dad will sorta be forced to stay in contact since you know, the offers for them will roll in. Two for the price of one." 

 

Amelia takes a deep breath and shrugs her shoulders. Yes, her Mom was complicated (And so was her Dad) but, she didn't want that to be the reason they stay single for forever. 

 

"Well, it doesn't help that they're in a complicated situation, especially Daddy." Amelia retorts with a heavy sigh.

 

Cassie covers her mouth as she continues eating her Belgian waffle, "What's so complicated about Daddy's situation?"

 

In perfect timing, the patio sliding door slides open revealing Victoria with her newly dyed orange hair and a red face that practically spits fury with a simple look.

 

" _You little fuckers._ " Victoria grits out and slams the door behind her, startling the girls in their seat. 

 

The girls exchange a look as they take in Victoria's exterior. She was dressed in a plain black and white skirt with a long-sleeved white tee with puffy frills at the end of the sleeves with her now Orange hair cascading down her back.

 

"Morning Vick, you're looking very exuberant today." Amelia offers a bright smile but Victoria inches towards the girls with a threatening walk.

 

"Can that compliments, troll." she grits out as she stands at the head of the table with a threatening glare at both of the girls.

 

"My hair is Orange." she grits out with the anger flashing in her face.

 

This prompts the girls to giggle and chuckle slightly which only infuriates Victoria more.

 

"Which one of you fuckers did this?" she points at her Orange ombre hair with a shaking finger, "I'm getting married in two weeks and I look like the end of Garfield's ass!" 

 

"You still watch Garfield?" Cassie teases with an innocent smirk, "I think it's quite noble you're choosing to represent a figure that has had a profound impact on you!" she gushes with a fake ass tone she's mastered from the few days she spent with her Mother.

 

Victoria's head whips towards Cassidy's and she inches closer to her with her hands on her hips, staring down at Cassie.

 

 _"You_ did this?" she points a finger at Cassie accusingly and that's enough for Amelia to raise from her seat and run behind Cassie for back up.

 

Usually, she would be one for Cassie's smart-ass commentary but, Victoria seems pissed right about now so, maybe they could hold off on the verbal ass-kicking? Not saying she deserves sympathy by any means but, it would be best to just avoid Cruella De Vil for the rest of the day. 

 

"I have no idea what you mean by that, _Mom."_ Cassidy gives a charming smirk as she leans forward and picks up a muffin mid-conversation. 

 

Victoria's face is stuck in her angry mode. Her jewel-like eyes are zeroed in on her target, her hands on her hips, her nostrils are flaring and she's pretty sure that her boob job is shaking in anger by themselves and the whole sight..is traumatizing, to say the least.

 

"Cass, _cool_ it, _"_ Amelia warns so only Cassidy can hear her but she ignores her like she's a piece of trash dwindling down the street on a windy day.

 

"Listen here, _Sweetie._ The minute your Dad and I get married your ass is in coach flying to the shittest boarding school money can find. Got it?" 

 

Cassie's face flusters at that as she stands to her feet and throws the muffin on the ground, "I'll do that right after your next stand up special, _Carrot Top."._

 

She tries so hard not to laugh but unfortunately, the laughter leaves her body before she can even think about it and before she knows it, she's on the receiving end of Victoria's hell hath no fury stare.

 

Amelia reaches out to grab ahold of Cassie to refrain her but, she jerks away from her touch and stands her ground firmly and looks right up to Victoria like she's her own size.

 

"You think you're so special when you're not. Just accept the fact that my Dad doesn't love you and move on to save yourself from the embarrassment you're due to face in a few minutes." Cassidy challenges Victoria who looks at Cassie like she's crazy as all hell.

 

"Do you even know what you're talking about?" Victoria tries. Amelia can tell she only says this because she's unsure of what to do next. What do you do when an eleven-year-old is dragging you back and forth for filth with a PG-13 language?

 

"Ask our Dad." Cassidy challenges as she crosses her arms, "Because he and our mom _totally_ got it on last night."

 

And everything after that happens so fast.

 

She doesn't exactly hear Victoria's reaction but, she's close enough to see it actually happen in that quick, unsettling and completely shocking moment. 

 

She lifts her hand into the air and strikes it across Cassidy's face so quickly that Cassie stumbles back and lands on the concrete with a hard thud. Without even thinking, Amelia's on the ground, reaching out to help take care of her sister and screaming for Eva or even her Dad. 

 

"Cass? Cass are you okay?" she shakes her sister's arm and her heart breaks in half as she sees the tears stream down her sister's face and her body shakes like she's a fucking chihuahua. Cassie's eyes are round and her breathing increases quicker and quicker as Amelia tries her best to pull her to her feet but she's not having any of it.

 

When she looks back up at Victoria, there's not one look of regret on her perfectly botoxed face and it further infuriates her. 

 

"Cass? Look at me! Look at me!" Amelia demands persistently, trying to shake her sister back into reality as she shudders and shrieks in shock and fear.

 

After what seems like a lifetime, Eva sprints outside, pushing Victoria to the side with a blanket and first aid kit.

 

"What happened?" she furiously demands as she joins the girls on the ground and wraps a blanket around Cassie's shaking figure.

 

The tears flood in Amelia's eyes as her mouth opens to speak but Victoria cuts her off.

 

"I think she's having a little panic attack or something like that." she bends down and gives the group a small pout which further infuriates Amelia even more. 

 

She can tell that Eva doesn't believe her but she turns her attention to helping Cassie at that current moment.

 

"Cass, honey? Look at me, are you okay?" Eva tries but it's no use, Cassidy is breaking down in hot and furious tears that's enough to bring Amelia to tears on her own.

 

"What's going on?" Her father sprints outside with urgency in his voice as he approaches the group with wide eyes and confused glares at everyone.

 

Eva shakes her head and stands up, lifting a now traumatized and furiously shaking Cassie in her arms. 

 

"She's having a really bad panic attack. Call the ambulance." Eva demands as Amelia watches their Dad circle around Cassidy with concern and panic in his eyes.

 

 _"Ambulance?"_ Amelia and Victoria demand at the same time.

 

"Isn't that a bit extreme?" Victoria strokes the nape of her neck nervously, "I mean..who _hasn't_ had a panic attack.".

 

She watches as Eva transfers Cassidy into their Dad's arms and he rubs circles on the small of her back without even thinking. 

 

"Shut the fuck up, Victoria!" their Dad furiously demands and he's practically sprinting with Cassie in his arms back to the house with Eva trailing behind him with urgency in their every move. 

 

She begins sprinting to the house to catch up with them because that's her sister and if there's a chance that her being present for her during this moment helps a little bit, she's taking that chance.

 

"Amelia!" Victoria steps in front of her, blocking the door. 

 

"What?" Amelia practically shouts at her, "What could you possibly want now?" the tears stream down her face hot and sour. 

 

Victoria's face falls slightly as she checks her surroundings and bends down to give a stage whisper.

 

"Let's not mention this to your Mom, alright?" she offers with her pinky and Amelia feels nausea all over. 

 

Usually, she'd bite her tongue and move on but no, not this time. 

 

"Fuck you, Victoria." the words leave her mouth without thinking and she's not even mad at herself for it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As always, kudos and comments are greatly appreciated and highly encouraged!


	8. Seven Wonders

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Red.
> 
> All she sees is fucking red as her chest heaves up and down and her face flusters in red.
> 
> Her fists are clenched so hard her knuckles go white, it feels like all of the wind and life has been knocked out her head and she feels the surge of anger beating through her heart and blood that makes her jump to her feet like a dog being submerged in water.
> 
> "Where is she?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WOW! 
> 
> The final, final chapter of this story! There are literally no words for me to describe how much the outpour of love and support this story has received means to me. I will forever be grateful for every single one of you who have supported this story and me from the very beginning.
> 
> With that being said, I dedicate this final chapter to you, the supporters of this story for being patient, supportive and loving throughout this entire process. Before this story, I was lucky and grateful to receive at least one comment or kudos on a story and to know, have a story with 65 comments is UNREAL to me! 
> 
> From the bottom of my heart, I thank you!

 

>   _There's no need to roam_
> 
>   
>  _'Cause home is where you are_
> 
>   
>  _Yes, now I know that home is where you are._
> 
>   
>  _- **'Seven Wonders'- Catch Me If You Can The Musical**_

* * *

 

"Where the _fuck_ is my daughter?" Amy demands threateningly the minute she enters the Mount Sinai Kravis Hospital for Children with John trailing behind her in panic. 

 

The tan-skinned receptionist's eyes widen as Amy approaches her desk with a not so welcoming scowl which is enough to prompt the young woman on her feet without a second glance. 

 

In the background, the sound of the slow-moving morning news drags on and on as Amy tries to calm the fuck down (But fails yet again). She had left her kid in the care of her father and she ends up in the hospital? What the actual fuck was going on at that

house?

 

"Ma'am, I need a name." 

 

John steps forward and pulls out Amy's wallet to show the receptionist Amy's ID card. 

 

"We're looking for Cassidy Belle Egan-"

 

 _"Brookheimer._ " Amy corrects almost instantly.

 

"Brookheimer I mean." John gives an earnest nod to the receptionist who looks like she's come face to face with death and the only way to handle it is to simply obey like a little bitch. The young woman types feverishly at the keyboard and takes a few glances at Amy every few minutes to make sure that she is in fact not plotting her murder right then and there.

 

Lucky for her though, it's not her murder that Amy is planning.

 

"Today, please." Amy snaps her fingers, "I'd like to see my child while she's still actually a patient here." 

 

"I apologize for the delay Ms. Brookheimer." the young woman apologizes instantly, "I found a Cassidy Egan but not a Cassidy Brookheimer." 

 

Amy groans and rolls her eyes, "It's the same fucking person, Einstein. Now tell me where she is." she requests.

 

"I apologize Ms. Brookheimer, but it seems only close friends and family are allowed to visit Cassidy at this time."

 

She's taken aback by this because since when did fucking Dan have close friends and or family? It doesn't make sense and if she knows anybody, she knows that fucking asshole and what he's capable of doing.

 

"That's bullshit!" John exclaims as Amy leans her elbows against the desk, "This is Cassidy's mother!" he points at Amy like it's obvious. 

 

The young woman shakes her head slowly and turns her attention back to the monitor, "I was given strict instructions from Mrs. Egan to keep the visiting list short and for it to only include those who arrived with their party."

 

Fuck, so on top of her kid actually being in the hospital, she now had to deal with the fact that Dan's little chew toy was making executive decisions on her daughter's health, she had no choice but to be pissed the fuck off. 

 

"Listen here." Amy places her hands on the counter, "This is my daughter that we're talking about here, trust and believe that if I am not on that elevator to the floor she is currently on, I will fuck you over so bad that you'll be just another pretty face in a casket. Understood?"

 

The woman nods slowly and takes another look at the monitor, "She's in the Emergency Room, go down the hall and through the double doors then take a left turn and you'll be right there." 

 

She nods at that and takes off down the hall with John trailing behind her. 

 

"John?" she grits out as the man catches up in front of her to open the door to let her through

 

"Yes, Ma'am?"

 

"If that bitch is anywhere near here, take Amelia out of the room. I don't want her seeing me drag that bitch through the mud." she grits her teeth as they take a left turn and approach the ER unit. 

 

"My pleasure, Ma'am." 

 

Once they arrive at the ER, she whips her head back and forth in search of her daughters. She can't find anyone and it's worrying her, all she sees are people in wheelchairs bent over at the waist.

 

"Mommy! Mommy!" she hears a voice call out from around and she's up at attention.

 

She could be dead in her coffin, six feet under and still know whose voice that is without even needing to be alive.

 

"Millie?" she and John turn in place, looking for the small girl.

 

Amy feels someone crash into her legs and wraps an arm around her waist. 

 

She looks down and is met with Millie who shakes in fear as the tears run down her face, "Millie, honey. Are you okay? What's wrong?" she bends down to one knee with her eyes going wide trying to figure out what the problem is.

 

She doesn't know what actually happened to Cassie, all she knows is that she got a panicked call from Amelia with her crying and that was enough for Amy to go into full protective mode. Let there be any pain in her children's lives and she'll kill it with her bare hands because that's what she does, she protects her girls.

 

"It was awful, Mom." Amelia cries out in fear, "I tried to go in to see her but Victoria wouldn't let me." 

Amy looks up at John for answers and he nods his head and takes off to the hallway of rooms without hesitation; leaving them alone. 

 

"Baby, I can't help you unless you tell me what happened." she takes Amelia's hands in hers and walks them over to a row of waiting chairs. 

 

"Can you tell me what happened?" she tries again but Amelia's face flushed and her chest rises up and down.

 

She can tell that whatever happened has Amelia so scared that she looks around a few more times before leaning into Amy with her eyes still on the horizon of the ER. 

 

"Victoria..did something to Cassie."

 

Her heart races at that and she raises an eyebrow for clarification, " _Okay,_ and what is it that she did to Cassie?"

 

Amelia takes a deep breath and tucks a strand of her hair behind her ear, "Cassie told Victoria that you and Daddy kissed because I told her and Victoria got really upset so.."

 

"So, _what?"_  she demands with the anger rising in her voice.

 

"She slapped her and Cassie fell to the ground and I guess it was too much that...she started shaking and crying and we brought her to the hospital.

 

_Red._

 

All she sees is fucking red as her chest heaves up and down and her face flusters in red.

 

Her fists are clenched so hard her knuckles go white, it feels like all of the wind and life has been knocked out her head and she feels the surge of anger beating through her heart and blood that makes her jump to her feet like a dog being submerged in water.

 

"Where is she?" 

 

Amelia blinks, "In the room with Dad." 

 

And that's all she needs to know before she goes and embarks on the long-awaited journey of beating Victoria's bony ass into the ground.

* * *

 

 Dan was never really..great with hospitals.

 

The last time he recalled being in one was when Amy gave birth to the girls eleven years ago so, that was the last time he actually stepped foot in the hospital, let alone the ER unit.

 

And he tries to block out that experience as much as possible. All he remembers-from the birth at least, is Amy screaming and crying so hard he was positive she would have a stroke while pushing out their kids' head and there were all kinds of unpleasant fluids and blood being injected from Amy that the thought of it just brings back intense nausea.

.

God, he hopes to god that Victoria isn't knocked up. He doesn't know if he'll honestly be able to do this whole child raising thing again. And that's saying a lot considering the fact that he was only dealing with one of his two for so many years.

 

Speaking of Victoria, what the actual fuck was wrong with her? Ever since he and Eva had found her and the girls in the backyard, the woman was silent and quite shaken at whatever it is had happened before they got out there.

 

"Where's Amelia?" Eva questions as she exits the small bathroom and sits to the side of an unconscious Cassidy in her hospital bed.

 

Dan shrugs his shoulders and thrusts his hands in his hair; needing to do something with his shaking hands. "I couldn't get her to come in, she's pissed about something and I'm too exhausted to find out why." he pulls a seat up to the hospital bed and drops in the chair with a sigh that ratters his body and bones. 

 

Seeing his daughter, in a hospital bed was an image he never knew would fuck him up. 

Her body is still from movement as she lays peacefully in the bed with a baby blue gown and strawberry blonde bob fanning out on the pillowcase. He takes notice of the slope of her small nose, light freckles painting her face and ears that all resemble Amys.

 

Fuck, Amy.

 

Everything was so chaotic and frightening that he forgot to even give Amy a call to let her know what it is they had to deal with right about now. The minute he pulls his phone out from his pocket, there's a sense of hesitancy from his part.

 

Should he call Amy? Should he admit that he might've fucked up yet again and deal with the circumstances of her being absolutely livid with him for the rest of eternity.

 

If she went eleven years without speaking to him, there's no doubt in his mind she'll go eleven more.

 

Victoria struts over and plucks the phone out of his hand.

 

"What the hell was that for?" he looks at her like she's crazy because what the actual fuck? He doesn't give a fuck how sexy she is when she's all hot and bothered, no one snatches his hand out of his phone like he's a little fucking bitch. 

 

 "You can't call her, Dan." she pleads with her big Bambi eyes going round, "You're Cassidy's dad and besides she'll come here act like she owns the goddamn place."

 

"You are fully aware that Amy is both Cassie and Amelia's mother, correct?" Eva chimes in, tearing her eyes away from Cassie's motionless body.

 

Victoria ignores her. 

 

"Not to mention the fact that she brainwashed your two perfect little _angels_ to absolutely despise me and make my life a living hell." she practically stomps her foot.

 

"Vick, I swear to-"

 

"And a husband is supposed to defend his wife's honor and stay by her side through both good and bad time-"

 

"You're not my wife." he cuts her off as he stands up from the stool.

 

"I know that." she takes a deep breath.

 

"But she'll always be the mother of my children." he crosses his arms and gives her a stern look which is enough for her jaw to drop.

 

Victoria's jaw drops and she gnaws on her bottom lip as her eyes run all over the room, looking for something to steady herself.

 

"Fuck you, Dan." Victoria spits at him and turns on her heel towards the door but it swings open, just missing Victoria's perfectly sculpted nose as she stumbles backward.

 

The door swings open revealing Amy and John who holds Amelia close to him as Amy stands in front of them with her chest heaving up and down and her face flushed in red. 

 

Fuck.

 

This is not going to end well.

 

"You piece of goddamn shit." Amy looks Victoria up and down and from the way Victoria's face flares in guilt, Dan is starting to get the idea of whatever the fuck happened..she had some parts of it. 

 

"Ms. Brookheimer, you're looking. _..well._ " Victoria tries but fails to charm Amy.

 

"My daughter isn't." Amy strongly declares, "She's laying in a hospital bed because of your jealous, psychotic ass." she firmly pushes Victoria against the wall with her nostrils flaring and that's Dan's cue to stand up and reach out to grasp onto Amy before she can do any more damage.

 

"Amy." he tugs on her backward, "Let her leave, it's alright." 

 

She jerks away from him and narrows her eyes at him, "No, Dan. It's not fucking alright!" she protests angrily, "I have one kid who needs intense therapy and I have another kid whose lying in a hospital bed because her father's girlfriend _slapped_ her." Amy roars as if they're not standing in the door of their daughter's hospital room.

 

Wait.

 

_Slapped?_

 

And it's in that moment, all the fucking pieces fall into the puzzle. 

 

From the look of panic and elevated fear in Amelia's eyes when he found her in the backyard with Cassie and Victoria, it looked like she was scared of whatever Cassie had dealt with was on a one-way street to make its mark on her but, he didn't know that the situation was that intense.

 

"Victoria, get out." leaves his mouth before he has a chance to think about it.

 

"Are you serious-"

 

 _"Out."_ he points a finger at the door and refuses to meet her eyes as he turns to get a good look at Cassidy again. 

 

Considering the fact that Dan's been her personal dildo and unlimited debit card, she does as she's told and doesn't stick around.

 

The minute Victoria slams the door shut behind her, he turns to face Amy head-on, ready to explain that he had no idea he was engaged to a fucking child abuser and had he knew so earlier, he would've broken up with her ages ago.

 

But Amy isn't having any of it.

 

"How fucking dare you let that tramp stamp lay a finger on my child?" Amy accuses him dangerously as he hears and sees tears streaming down Amelia's face.

 

"Amy. It was a mistake, I didn't kno-"

 

"No, Dan!" her hands are flying in the air now, "A mistake is when you accidentally order Amelia clam chowder knowing damn well it makes her sick, that's a mistake I can understand but you and your fucking pieces of ass ruining my life was fucking enough and you are a fucking fool if you think I'm letting this happen to one of my kids." she puts her hands on his chest and pushes him back.

 

"You're acting like I did this to her, I'm just as pissed as you are." he points at her. 

 

Amy just laughs maniacally like she's a regular member of the mental institution downtown and it makes him so uncomfortable his legs bounce up and down as his hands fly to his hips. 

 

"You never dumped the bitch. Not once did you ever take your children's feelings into account because you were too busy trying to get your dick your of your pants."

 

 _"Me?_ You really want me to believe that you've remained so celibate all these years because you were waiting for Amelia to learn how to speak to tell you whether or not she liked one of your stale chew toys?"

 

Amy grits her teeth and for a full minute, he expects her to slap him, with all this shit. He has it coming but, he's shocked when she reels back and squeezes her fist together. 

 

"I never said I did but I never let any of that affect my children or their health, Dan. Something you can't say." she accuses him and makes her way over to Cassidy's bed with tears in her eyes. 

 

The room falls silent as he turns to see Amelia sobbing in Eva's arms with her body shaking and it's overwhelming him even more. 

 

Had he known that Victoria would bring so much pain and aggravation to the girls and Amy, he would've dumped her earlier. 

 

All he can do is put his hand on Amy's back as she begins to sob so uncharacteristically, her body shakes rapidly as her furious, hot tears slide off her red face and hit the ground with a small noise.

 

"Ames, she's going to be alright." he tries but she shakes her head furiously.

 

"Well I'm not." she takes a deep breath, "I'm not comfortable knowing that my daughter is staying with you and your plethora of women." 

 

He freezes.

 

_"What?"_

 

Amy calls Eva's name and points at the door, informing her to take Amelia outside and for John to follow them outside as well.

 

She stands up from the chair and wipes her tears.

 

"I'm done, Dan." she releases a deep breath.

 

He strokes his beard and looks at her with studying eyes; trying to read her. She's crying obviously but the reasoning behind it remains a mystery. Some of the tears were meant for Cassidy he supposes but he knew that there was already different reasons for Amy crying. She never cried, for one thing, her mind was always thinking of other things.

 

So, when she cried for one thing..she cried for other things as well.

 

"With what?"

 

"This whole debacle, okay? We should've just switched the girls when we knew about the switch..but we didn't and for a minute. A _fucking_ minute, I thought for maybe just one second, we could work but, it's time I realize that we'll never work." 

 

He turns to see Cassie still resting in the bed without a care in the world and he's glad to see her at such a relaxed state. 

 

"Amy, don't say that." he reaches out to bring her in for a hug but she shrugs away from him with teary eyes.

 

"Why?" she demands, "Because you love me or some shit?" she teases him and he has to pace back and forth before he actually explodes and wakes up Cassidy.

 

"Fine, Amy, I love you and you know I do." he feels his heart beating in his chest, "All these years I've been denying it and it makes no sense. I love you and I know you love me." 

 

She swallows as her chest rises up and down.

 

"No, Dan." she declares with her eyes flashing dangerously, "You don't love me. Never have and probably never will." she shakes her head and from the way her voice stays so clear and strong, he can tell she's really believing what she's saying. 

 

"Ames." he tries but she turns and practically bolts out of the room, leaving Dan and an unconscious Cassidy.

 

Fuck, when did this become his life? 

 

* * *

 

 She paces around the hospital a good four or five times to ride out the anger and adrenaline from her fight with Dan. It seemed like the more and more she walked around the large building in the crisp New York air, the smaller the building got as she felt the world cave in on her.

 

There was so much she wanted to scream about, so much she wanted to fucking ask the goddamn world about and she just felt..lost. 

 

Her innocent, eleven-year-old daughter was slapped in the face by her father's girlfriend and was now lying in a hospital bed unconscious because of it.

 

There was so much that she wants to ask but she'll know she'll never get the answers to and it pisses her off ultimately. And Dan wonders why she left him the moment she got the chance. She couldn't handle all of the underlying moves and lies he fed her every day, especially with the girls.

 

When she rounds the corner again to begin her sixth or seventh lap around the building, John arrives in front of her with his bag slung over one shoulder and an understanding look on his face.

 

"How are you holding up?" he tries.

 

She takes a deep breath for the first time in forever and looks around the busy city to avoid getting emotional again for the millionth time that fucking day,

 

"My baby is in the hospital and I feel like I should be in there versus her-I'd prefer it actually." her voice croaks out

 

He nods his head like he understands her pain and offers her a trench coat, "Well, the good news is that she woke up about five minutes ago." 

 

She feels a weight the size of Japan heaved off her shoulders within seconds.

 

"She's awake?" she's up and at attention.

 

John nods and pats her trench coat with a slow hand, "They're testing her right now but, her Doctor would like to have a word with you." 

 

"Perfect." she takes a sigh of relief and tried to maneuver her way around John but he steps right in front of her, blocking her path.

 

"John. Move before I move you," she demands.

 

He nervously adjusts his thick-framed glasses and looks around them nervously; making sure they're not causing a scene but at this point, Amy couldn't give a shit. 

 

"The Doctor is requesting to speak to both you and Mr. Egan." 

 

"About?" 

 

He takes a deep breath, "The Incident." 

 

She groans, "Why can't they just release her?" she throws her hands in the air; extremely frustrated.

 

John simply shrugs his shoulders, "I'm assuming that it has something to do with her panic attack in the first place." John tries but Amy's too stressed to deal with his sincerity.

 

So, she breezes past him and makes her way back to the Emergency Floor with John trailing at her heels.

 

It takes her a good five minutes to reach the Emergency Room and she pauses in her place to turn to John for guidance to what door to go through. 

 

John steps in front of her and twists open the door, allowing her to enter before him.

 

When she steps in the room, she sees the back of Dan's head as he sits in one of the two chairs set right at front of the wooden desk and she keeps her eyes away from him as best as she can.

 

"Did you hear she woke up?" he tries for conversation as John pulls out her seat. 

 

"Yes," she answers flatly.

 

"Ames, I'm-"

 

"No."

 

He pauses and she hears the confusion running through his mind, "Excuse me?" 

 

She turns to address him, "I'm not sitting through some grand fucking speech you memorized in the five minutes of my absence for me to possibly forgive you and your chew toy."

 

Dan sputters in shock as John takes a seat on the outskirts of the room obediently.

 

"Will you calm down?"

 

"My kid is in the hospital because of your fucking girlfriend, excuse me if I'm not exactly the most relaxed person in the room." she starts but the door swings open and it threatens her into an unwilling silence. 

 

The footsteps behind them circle around them and right in front of them to reveal a middle-aged man with light brown skin as he extends a hand to both Dan and Amy with a warm smile. 

 

"Dr. Luckenbill." he introduces himself warmly to Amy, "It's nice to meet you both." he turns to Dan and offers a warm smile but Dan's not having any of it. 

 

"How is she?" Dan demands as the man settles into the desk and slices open the manila envelope with a heavy sigh as he adjusts his thick-rimmed glasses. 

 

He clears his throat, "Well, the good thing is that she's regained consciousness and the blow to her head wasn't as bad as we expected. She remembers her name, personal information, recognized her sister and aunt and remembers bits and pieces of the situation that unfolded."

 

Fuck.

 

"So can she come home now?" Amy's eyes blink with hope, at this point all she wanted to do was rip up the damn custody agreement and take both of her girls back home and shelter them from every other human fucking being at this point. 

 

Dr. Luckenbill takes a deep breath and strokes his nape nervously; avoiding both Dan and Amy's burning eyes.

 

"Considering how well the test goes, she should be able to go home soon. Her Respiratory Rate is still too high for my comfort and she's still shaken up from the event so, it all depends on that." 

 

Dan pinches the bridge of his nose and shakes his head, "Is this all?" 

 

"Unfortunately no," he responds with heavy eyes

 

God, why the fuck did everything have to be so goddamn complicated? 

 

"What now?" Amy sighs

 

Dr. Luckenbill rifles through the papers in the file and pulls out a faded packet with sprawling signatures resting at the end of the pages and it doesn't take Amy long for her to know what it is he's holding in his hands. 

 

"It's to my understanding that you two are divorced?" his eyes run over the paper. 

 

"Yes." They both respond in unison.

 

"And your custody agreement here highlights the fact that you both have full custody of one of your two daughters without visitation or parental rights given to the other." he lifts the papers to get a good look at reading them. 

 

They nod at that.

 

"Well, one of the agreements listed by Mr. Egan's lawyer, Ben Cafferty, is that the minute one of the children is admitted into the hospital for a situation that requires the CPS to be involved, the child at that point is free to choose who it is they wish to live with full time." 

 

And she doesn't know who's more surprised, her or Dan from the way his jaw drops. 

 

"Where the fuck was that in the agreement?" Dan leans forward and snaps his finger at the doctor; demanding the papers from him.

 

"Third paragraph, second asterisk, In bold lettering." Luckenbill hands the papers over to Dan without hesitation.

 

She turns in her seat as she watches Dan internally lose his shit over the possibility of losing Cassie. 

 

She wants her heart to break from him, she really does but, after all this and everything, maybe it's wise for Cassidy to pick who she wants to live with. If Cassie doesn't feel safe with Dan anymore, then she doesn't blame her whatsoever. 

 

"So you're telling me I can lose my fucking daughter over this shit?" he looks up from the paper with his nostrils flaring at the Doctor. 

 

 Dr. Luckenbill holds a defensive hand up and speaks with a slow, cautious tone. 

 

"In the event that Cassidy chooses to live with Ms. Brookheimer then yes, there is the potential of you losing full custody."

 

She watches as Dan slams the papers on the table with his head hanging down and his leg bouncing up and down nervously.

 

The silence is self-explanatory.

 

He's pissed and she oddly doesn't blame him. Cassie was his daughter just as much as hers and the fact that after eleven years, all that history could be swept under a rug by one single decision could potentially break his heart. And if there's anything she's learned about Dan, it's that he doesn't take heartbreak or rejection well.

 

"Dan." she turns to face him but he's up on his feet, exiting the room in a rushed fashion, leaving her alone in the Doctor's office feeling like the biggest fucking bitch in the whole world.

 

* * *

 

 By the end of the night, after Dan's paced around the building a million times and Amy's sent about fifty different emails, they both end up in Cassidy's room ready to come clean to both of the girls.

 

Since the girl was so shaken from the day, Dr. Luckenbill made the executive decision of keeping Cassidy for one more night and despite her flight leaving that same night, there was no way in hell that Amy could fly on the other side of the country while her baby was still in a hospital bed.

 

"Millie? Millie baby wake up." Amy lightly shakes Amelia's heavy arm as her cheek rests on the hospital bed and her arm is sprawled over Cassidy's body underneath the covers with a protective stance. The image makes her smile because it's exactly how they would sleep when they were just babies. One girl would have an arm wrapped around the other.

 

She pulls out her phone and snaps a quick picture of the two quietly as Dan settles on the opposing side of the hospital bed. 

 

Dan leans forward and brushes the strands of her hair from Cassidy's sweaty forehead and settles in the uncomfortable hospital chair. The minute h begins to remove his jacket, Cassidy's heavy-lidded eyes flutter awake and her parents are right at attention.

 

"Hi, Daddy. Hi, Mommy." she yawns sweetly as she adjusts her body under the thin covers and manages to move Amelia's hands from her body. 

 

"Hi." they both respond at the same time with their eyes raking over their girls.

 

"Do you feel better?" Amy slowly wakes up Amelia from her deep sleep and helps her into the seat next to hers.

 

Cassidy yawns like a cat as Amelia wipes her eyes with her hands.

 

"A little." she sighs, "Can we go home?" she looks to her parents for guidance but they both fall silent. 

 

Without planning, both Dan and Amy exchange a short look of panic; telepathically trying to sort out how to navigate through this weird, uncomfortable conversation with their already exhausted eleven-year-old daughters.

 

"About that.." Dan starts but Amy's quick to cut him off for clarification.

 

"We have something to discuss with you, Cassie." Amy leans forward and takes the girl's hand in hers. Cassie's steely eyes go wide as she sits up right under the thin hospital bed covers.

 

Amy takes a deep breath and sighs which eliminates any plans of Dan being the bearer of bad news. She's so clearly hell-bent on doing this was Cassidy and he lets her have this moment.

 

"Are we in trouble?" Amelia jumps to her sister's defense.

 

"No." Dan and Amy respond.

 

Amy tucks a strand of her hair behind her ear and brings her seat closer to Cassidy.

 

"When your father and I got divorced, Uncle Ben made a.. _.plan_ that in the event you or your sister get seriously hurt then you guys would get to pick who to live with permanently," Amy explains with a careful tone and slow diction.

 

He watches as the girl's face falls in confusion at the latest revelation and they both share a look of confusion with one another, expressing just how lost they are. 

 

"You mean change the custody agreement?" Amelia looks at her hands sadly with her voice down in the sorrows and heavier than usual.

 

Amy just takes a deep breath and nods in confirmation, "Yes baby, that's exactly what we mean. Cassidy is free to choose who she wants to live with now." 

 

"Is this because Victoria slapped me?" Cassie speaks up with her eyes focused on her hands in her lap.

 

And that's what makes Dan wince in response. The thought of Victoria, his fucking fiancee of all people laying a finger on his daughter was enough to make his body shudder in discomfort and disbelief, especially because he's seeing the fucking consequences of Victoria's actions. 

 

"Yes, that's why," Amy responds almost instantly after taking a deep breath to calm herself and not lose her mind in front of her children for what would most likely be the tenth time that day.

 

Cassie looks up from her hands and studies both Dan and Amy's face with careful eyes, probably knowing that whatever decision she makes can lead to a different life.

 

"Why would Uncle Ben do that?" Amelia stands up from the chair and crosses over to slide into Dan's lap which catches him completely off guard but from the warmness of her body, he doesn't exactly hate it for one minute.

 

He slides a hand over Amelia's soft hair and tucks her head underneath his chin with a hand going up and down her back, the same way he's done to her when she was a baby and the same way he's done to Cassidy all her life.

 

And he doesn't know why Ben did it. When Dan had hired Ben as his lawyer all those years ago to help him get through his divorce, he didn't know that at the same time he'd possibly be helping Amy on her end of the divorce. 

 

"Your Uncle Ben loves you girls and he just wanted to make sure you guys were safe and well looked after in the future." Amy runs a hand through Cassidy's glossy bob.

 

"Does she have to pick?" Amelia speaks up from Dan's chest as he feels the tears brim through his black shirt.

 

"No, she doesn't have to." Amy explains, "Only if she wants to.".

 

They sit there for a brief minute and as Amy looks at Cassidy, she sees her weighing and calculating her options internally. It's a ridiculous request, in all honesty, basically making her child choose one parent over the other in the middle of a health scare as she lies in the hospital bed with both parents present. 

 

"You have to stay here overnight anyways so, you have plenty of time to decide whether or not you really want to do this." Dan leans forward and takes Cassie's other hand with his.

 

"No." Cassie softly speaks up, "I'll pick who I want to stay with." 

 

It's in that moment that Dan and Amy both look at each other in the eyes for the first time at that moment with panic and confusion brimming in their eyes. 

 

"Cass, you don't have to choose now." Amy leaps in, "As Daddy said, you have some time to choose if you even want to choose."

 

Amelia rises from Dan's chest as Dan chimes in with a panicked tone.

 

"Cass, don't do anything rash now. Take some time to really think about this decision-it's a pretty big one too." he offers but Cassidy's not having any of it. 

 

Cassidy shakes her head furiously and adjusts herself underneath the covers, turning her head to look at her father straight in the eye.

 

"No Dad, I've thought long and hard about this. Long and hard." she gives a threatening look to her father which prompts his eyes to widen in panic and Amelia to slide off her Dad's lap to confront her sister.

 

"Cassie. Calm down." she offers but her sister simply waves her off.

 

"I know you love Victoria, Daddy. And I don't want to ruin your one chance of being happy." she nervously plays with her fingers as Dan stands to his feet in a panic.

 

"Cass, baby. I love you and your sister more than-"

 

"No you don't" she sputters out and there's a knife that practically stabs Dan in the heart the minute she looks away from him and back to Amy with pain in her eyes and trembling voice.

 

"I want to live with Mom and Millie." Cassie declares with a soft voice. 

 

For a split moment, it feels like Dan's world comes crashing in on him. His head goes heavy and his chest falls flat in response. The feeling only gets worse when he feels Amy's eyes lock on him, searching for a reaction and he has to try and remain stoic through it all. He knows damn well the minute he shows an inch of emotion, she'll use it as his weakness.

 

Part of Amy wants to jump and scream internally because finally after eleven years, she could have both of her girls to herself the way she's always imagined since the divorce. But, the way Dan just...shuts down puts a damper on her mood in complete honesty. Probably because she too knows that had she been in Dan's shoes, she would've felt just as emotional (If not more) than he is.

 

"Cass, baby. You don't have to do that." Amy offers, speaking to Cassie but really speaking to Dan; trying to let him know that she wasn't expecting this as much as he wasn't.

 

But Cassidy isn't making it any easier. 

 

"No. I want to." she turns her body turns Amy, completely ignoring Dan. "I can live with you and Millie and..we can be one family together," she says and Amy winces at her word choice silently.

 

"Babe. I want you to think long and hard about this. This isn't just a week-long thing, there's a lot of paperwork and it's a long process and you won't be able to see Aunt Eva, your Grandma, friends or your Dad." 

 

 _"Cassie."_ Amelia gives her a long and hard knowing look, "Think about this."  she encourages her sister with a stern gaze and slow diction to really get her point across. 

 

Then the room falls silent. With each member of the family practically leaning o the edge of their seat for Cassidy's instant decision. 

 

"I did and I'm going with Mom." Cassie declares strongly one last time without daring to give Dan a proper acknowledgment.

 

And he's never felt more alone and invisible than in that moment right there.

 

* * *

 "What would possess you to even make that kind of decision?" Amelia hisses at her sister the minute there home and the two of them begin packing Cassidy's essentials in her two suitcases.

 

 Cassidy takes a deep breath as she pulls out her favorite pair of shorts and throws them into the suitcase, "Being slapped by Victoria and ending up in the hospital kinda made the decision for me."

 

Amelia sighs and runs a hand through her hair.

 

"Dad loves you. He would've broken up with her the minute he saw her, he just didn't know." Amelia offers but Cassie crosses over to her and yanks the stack of clothing from her hands. 

 

She releases a soft chuckle and makes her way back the ground in front of her open suitcase, stuffing more and more clothes. 

 

"You still don't know Dad as well as you think you do." Cassidy shakes her head at her sister, "He's only upset because things aren't going his way." she grits out as she grabs a pile of socks and begins to furiously throw them into her suitcase.

 

Amelia rolls her eyes, Did her sister just have to be so dramatic in a time of panic? In about a few hours, they would be joining their mom on a flight back home to San Fransisco and now was not the time to hold grudges especially when there's a chance of their plan not working out anymore.

 

How on earth could they pull off their plan if the originator of the plan itself had given up on the plan?

 

"That may be true but we can't give up now! Who knows, maybe he'll break up with her." Amelia settles herself on the ground next to the suitcase.

 

"Why are you so hell-bent on me staying here? I thought this was part of the plan, you and I end up together forever." Cassidy searches Amelia's face for answers.

 

Amelia groans and pulls out Cassidy's rumbled clothing and begins folding it on the side, trying to stall for time. 

 

"The plan was to get Mom and Dad back together." Amelia corrects her

 

"And we failed so hence the plan has ended." Cassidy blinks at her like she's crazy

 

Amelia throws her hands in the air in frustration, "No it hasn't." she protests, "I know that Victoria put a dent in our road and screwed everything up but this is our last chance to make our parents happy." 

 

"Trust and believe me when I say that she's done more than putting a dent in my life," Cassie mumbles underneath her breath as there's a knock on the door.

 

They both look up and are met with their Dad who stands underneath the door with his hands in his pockets awkwardly and it prompts Cassie to focus her eyes back on the suitcase versus looking at him.

 

"I was wondering if you're interested in talking for a quick minute before you leave?" he leans against the door frame.

 

Cassidy scoffs at that and returns at throwing the socks back into her luggage with gritted teeth.

 

"No thanks." she offers without looking up from the suitcase.

 

Amelia gives her a Dad a pity smile and nudges her sister, "No, Millie. I think you did want to talk to Dad before you left, _remember?"_

 

For the first time since he's entered, Cassidy's chocolate eyes zero in on her father threateningly as she stands from the ground and throws herself onto her bed.

 

"Eventually when Victoria gets knocked up would you mind not giving the baby my room? I know Victoria's been on an interior design kick lately and I don't want to see what my room will look like the manicured hands of that snake."

 

And Amelia doesn't even hide her groan of disappointment. 

 

 _"Cass."_ Dan huffs in irritation as he removes himself from the door and inches towards his daughter who lays on the bed with a dramatic look playing on her soft features. "Victoria's not getting pregnant, okay?"

 

Cassidy makes an unimpressed noise at that, "I won't be here so I don't care. Hopefully, the kid doesn't end up in the hospital as I did, it's not a fun experience." she responds bitterly.

 

 _"Cassidy."_ their Dad's voice goes up and octave and it takes a few deep breaths for him to calm down, "No one is getting pregnant." 

 

Amelia finishes folding a stack of Cassidy's painfully rumbled clothing by color and style and orderly stacks them in the suitcase.

 

"Stop lying to me." she crosses her arms and sighs, "You have no idea what it feels like to have someone lie to you." 

 

"Cassidy. Victoria isn't coming back, we can talk until your Mom shows up okay?" he offers the minute there's another knock on the door.

 

They look to the door and are met with Eva who stands there with a knowing look directed towards Dan and her arms crossed.

 

"She's here, Dan." 

 

And that's what sets Cassidy into even more a frenzy now that she was earlier. She stands from her bed and gives her father a pointed look, "Should I hide in the attic before Hitler comes up to attack me again?" 

 

Then Amelia is at her feet, trying to calm her sister down. In a panic, Amelia turns to face her father who looks every bit of lost and angry as they do and gives a finger to the two of them. 

 

"Stay right here. Do not move," he orders them and within seconds he's out of the room and jolting down the stairs with Eva right at his feels.

 

There's a moment of silence where Amelia can see the wheels turning in Cassidy's head and the switch is threatening to shut her and her vibrant personality off but Amelia's not having it. 

 

"I told you he wouldn't change," she whispers so softly that it almost frightens Amelia half to death.

 

The problem with this entire situation is that Amelia knows it's all wrong. She knows that Victoria shouldn't have done what she did and she knows that Dad should've put an end to this whole relationship madness before someone got seriously hurt. And considering the fact that someone actually did end up hurt (And that someone being her sister), she wants to crush the situation whole with her tiny hands as best as she can.

 

So that's when she decides for herself and the better nature of everybody and that enough is enough. 

 

If Dad wasn't going to break up this engagement, then she would be more than happy to.

 

* * *

 

 

"What the fuck are you doing here?" Dan's eyes widen the minute he's off the staircase and approaching Victoria head on with Eva's footsteps droning on in the distance. 

 

Victoria looks at him like he's off his goddamn rockers and leans forward to give him a handsy hug and possessive kiss on his lips.

 

"I've been waiting and waiting for you to answer your phone. Today's the day we go put the down deposit on the venue, we have to finalize the guest list and because of that dramatic detour we had because of _you know who_ yesterday." she waves a hand over herself dramatically which fuels Dan with rage.

 

"Victoria. This wedding is the last thing on my fucking mind, okay? Cassidy chose to move in with Amy because of this shit." 

 

Victoria's eyes disgustingly go wide and her hands fly to her chest, dramatically tugging at her heart. 

 

"All the better!" she claps her hands dramatically, "The girls can live with their mother when you and I begin our future together." she smiles at him like it makes all of the sense in the world. Unfortunately for her, it makes no kinds of fucking sense whatsoever. 

 

 _"No._ " Dan shakes his head furiously, jerking away from her soft hands, "I'm not moving on without my girls." he pushes past her and into the living room, wanting to be along but Victoria's either too blind or too determined to get the hint of that.

 

Victoria groans as she trails behind him, "Why not? Why not?" she demands

 

"Because they're my  children." Dan enunciates for her, throwing the television remote square on the couch, "And don't think for one second that I don't know about your crazy ass putting a finger on my daughter." he points at her accusingly. 

 

Normally, seeing Victoria's jaw unhinge and that crazy look in her eyes would turn Dan on in an instant but he's far from being in the mood now. Believe it or not, abusing his kids is quite the dick and deal breaker for him.

 

"How about those little angels of yours, Dan?" she stands up to him defiantly, "Those spawn of yours have been a major pain in my ass since Day One and if you think that I was going to sit there and take it like a bitch then you are dumber than I thought." 

 

"I don't care what it is they've done to you. You man the fuck up and be an adult about the situation, not throw punches like a fucking WWE fighter with my goddamn daughter." he points at her but she slaps his hand away with a knowing smirk.

 

 _"Dan."_ her eyes go large and the fake tears begin to brim her sockets. 

 

And he knows this fucking routine. Amy should be arriving there at any minute to come and collect the girls and he never had the chance to say goodbye because of Cassidy's stubbornness and Victoria's bitchiness and he's had about enough of it. 

 

He hears a set of rapid, feverish footsteps practically fly down the staircase and it doesn't take him long to know who's about to join this conversation against his will.

 

"Get out, Victoria." Amelia's nostrils flare at the older woman as she takes a step in front of Dan.

 

Victoria looks from Amelia to Dan and a hint of laughter shakes through her body as she looks Amelia up and down like she's lost her fucking mind.

 

"Get out bite-size, your Daddy and I are having a conversation." Victoria chooses to ignore her altogether but Amelia's not having it. 

 

"I'm staying right here." she crosses her arms and looks Victoria up and down in disgust.

 

And the response is enough to pull his focus from Victoria and look down at his daughter in his surprise. 

 

Christ, had he known that his daughter was this strong he would've enlisted her help ages ago.

 

"Watch who you're talking to," Dan warns her the minute he feels a sense of warmth creep up from behind him and from the shallow breaths and slow footsteps, he knows good and well that Cassie's join them on the scene with Eva somewhere probably calling the cops or better yet Amy.

 

"No!" Victoria shrieks and practically stomps her foot on the ground defiantly, "I am sick of this back and forth bullshit between me and the fucking Olson twins, okay?" 

 

"We are too," Cassidy speaks up from behind Dan with a small voice. 

 

Victoria gives a pointed look to the girls and her eyes laser back in on Dan's with a stare that means business. 

 

"Pick or choose, Dan." she takes a step back and takes a seat on the armrest of the couch, "It's either _me_ or them. Take your pick." she crosses her legs and waits with a confident smile.

 

It's like the world pauses for a minute. He takes one good long look at Victoria, really taking in her all Chanel exterior and bitchy confidence 

 

Then he looks down at his girls. 

 

The ones he'd move the sun and earth for, the diabolical yet down to earth sweet children with the mouths and smarts of two well off political staffers and most importantly the only thing he's certain he's perfected in his life.

 

At this point, is it even really a contest?

 

So, he shrugs and looks Victoria square in the face, "Them." 

 

And the way Victoria's jaw drops in confusion and her eyebrows furrow is a fucking picture perfect reaction if he's ever seen one.

 

"What?" she shrieks in surprise as she jumps from the couch to her feet with her hands on her hips, standing her ground. 

 

"T-H-E-M. _Them."_ he crosses his arms defiantly and gives her a smirk as a taste of her own goddamn medicine, "Get the picture?" he challenges her and there's not a minute that he doubts his answer. 

 

He knows what he wants and he wants his kids and his girl back.

 

He doesn't know what feels better, watching her walk away with the fury and rage on her pale features or that feeling he gets in his heart when his girls squeeze him for a hug immediately after.

 

* * *

 

She didn't say goodbye.

 

She didn't want to say goodbye. 

 

They didn't say goodbye before, so why say it now? And it's not like they'll go another eleven years without seeing one another again. She just..couldn't bring herself to say goodbye. 

 

Not to mention the fact that she was in a fucking frenzy to even get out of Dan's parking lot before he could even have a chance to say goodbye. All she cared about was the fact that the girls were able to say their farewells since they weren't given that privilege last time. 

 

God, this whole week was such a fucking mess from start to finish and at this point, she's still quite impressed with herself for pulling off the near-impossible task of bringing home both of her girls.

 

It's not until they're all strapped into their seats on the plane, in pursuit of heading home 30,000 feet in the air, she realizes that she has both of her girls the way she's dreamt all her life. 

 

Then a surge of nervousness hits her body like a crashing wave and she has to hold onto the sleeve of her shoulder together because it's been so long since she's felt this feeling. 

 

Not the feeling of complete and utter concern like she always had since her first day of motherhood but, the small bout of panic resting at the back of her mind. 

 

Her anxiety was already tested by the time they made their way to the airport and Cassidy had realized that she must've left her stuffed animal (Charlie) at home and was one word away from a meltdown. And since she had sent John home that morning with them leaving that afternoon, she couldn't snap her fingers and have John make a new goddamn stuffed animal magically disappear. 

 

 

But for her girls (and the spare phone she had in her possession) she chooses to just order a cocktail and try to go the fuck to sleep.

 

Then there was the added bonus of her goddamn phone not being in her fucking hand and the feeling of not knowing where it's at drives her up the fucking walls and she's certain she'll explode within the next few minutes.

 

 

The one that portrays all worse possible outcomes for Amelia or Cassidy or even both of them and it scares her shitless. She has to actually look over to the girls who sleep comfortably in the seats next to her just to make sure that they're more than alright and sound asleep.

 

Lucky for her and her sanity, they're knocked out clean and sleeping without a single care in the world, just like Amy likes it. She smiles to herself as she watches the girls sleep though, it reminds her of a somewhat simpler time when they were both new babies and slept without a single concern or worry in the world as she and Dan carried all of the worries on their shoulders.

 

She's so fucking keyed and exhausted that she would love nothing more than to just curl up against the window and take a deep nap but she had a suspicion the minute that she did then her mind would transport to the grey area of her life she had been meaning to block out for so long. It wasn't a dream by any means, or even really a nightmare just a...memory she's tried so hard to let go of but has had a hard time doing so. 

 

And it's not a bad memory. If anything, it's one of the best memories and she wonders if that's the reason why she still can't suppress it even after all these years.

* * *

 

_***Sometime in 2008*** _

 

"Hey, Ames?"

 

Amy sighed as she looked up into his eyes as she placed her chin right on top of the arm that rests at the center of his shirtless body. She's too tired to respond, too tired to give one of those snarky, witty one-liners he loves hearing her say and simply makes a small noise of response. 

 

"Your phone is still ringing off the hook." he offers her the phone but she holds a hand up and returns her head to it's laying position on Dan's warm body and wraps her arm over his bare torso, taking in his warmth and comfort.

 

"Let it go to voicemail." she mumbles against his chest and feels the vibration of her words run on Dan's chiseled chest and stomach, "Maybe she'll get the hint."

 

Dan sighs and discards the phone on the opposite end of the table without hesitation and returns to running soft, careful fingers through her hair. She never admits to actually liking him doing that to her but, she doesn't want to say anything in fear of it stopping. Truth be told, everything seemed to make it more sense and at ease when his long fingers were threading through her long blonde locks.

 

"Do you want to talk about it?" he offers and she shakes her head furiously.

 

"I'm fine, you know?" she removes herself from his chest and gives him a pointed look, "People have heart attacks all the time and today my Dad was one of them." she musters a deep breath and runs a hand through her hair.

 

"That's not what I'm talking about and you know it." he gives her a look that could cut a diamond in half, "C'mon, let's talk about this." he grabs the remote and silences the documentary on three three branches of government from CNN for the millionth time.

 

"Talk about what, Dan?" Amy rolls her eyes in disbelief, "How my parents don't give a shit about my success and are more worried about me settling down and pushing kids out of my cunt?" her eyes flash dangerously at him as she sits up underneath the covers and throws herself against the white pillows that are propped up against the headboard.

 

From the way Dan stares at her with a dumbfounded look on his soft features, she can tell that she's done that thing where she started ranting about god knows what and ended up revealing too much about herself to the point of no return. Which fucking sucks for her because she was trying her absolute hardest to not get caught up in the trap that was Dan Egan.

 

They weren't dating by any means and he certainly wasn't the bright-eyed, smooth-talking boyfriend her parents were dreaming of her to stumble upon. If anything, he was the without a doubt handsome young strategist with devastatingly good looks and high charm that was strong enough to have an undeniable hold on any woman he approached no matter the age.

 

Unfortunately for her, she was one of those women he had a holdover. 

 

"Whoa." he looks her up and down in disbelief from her latest revelations, "I didn't know you felt that way." the surprise is high in his voice as he adjusts his positioning underneath the covers and her shoulders rise along with her chest as she tries to calm herself. 

 

"They just want to know that you're...happy." the words sound foreign leaving his mouth and she wonders if it feels that way to say it for him as well. She and Dan don't do 'happy' and they sure as hell don't do 'concernn'. The only time they allow themselves to come close to that rush of emotion is when they've done something successful professionally and are looking down the barrel of complete and utter success in terms of their jobs.

 

Sure, they make each other laugh at times but that's because they're funny as shit when they want to be.

 

"I can be happy without pushing a kid out of my cunt," she states matter of factly, squaring her shoulders so she's looking down in her lap, her eyes far away from Dan.

 

"I know you can." he states with all of the confidence in the world, "Why else do you think I like you?" 

 

Her eyebrow raises at that and she turns, ready to argue any points he has ready for her. 

 

"Excuse me?" she looks him and up down, trying her absolute hardest to not get distracted but his shirtless body is making it harder and harder.

 

"I like you, Brookheimer." he offers her with his hand creeping onto the side of her waist and stroking her skin ever so softly.

 

And she tries. She tries so fucking hard to not give in and flash that annoyingly sweet yet surprised, girly smile she's always been self-conscious about at him. Instead, she tries to find a reason as to why he's doing this, why would he magically admit to having some high-school crush on her the minute she felt vulnerable with him?

 

"You _like_ me?" the words feel awkward tumbling out of her mouth and doesn't feel any better about herself the way he smiles and nods at her.

 

"Why is that so hard to believe?" he licks his lips the minute she feels her breast skin gets exposed from the cover dropping and she uses the opportunity to slide her lacy nude bra back on.

 

She laughs to herself as she shrugs the bra back on, "You're Dan Egan, that's why." she states like it's obvious. 

 

"And what's that supposed to mean?" he responds with a knowing smirk.

 

 "I know that you're not one for settling down or whatever the hell you want me to believe, Dan. So don't try to play around with me on that subject." she throws her hands in the air and decides to just roll over and face the wall.

 

Unfortunately for her, Dan's never been one to give up on something when he was quite adamant about it so, instead of leaving her be, he rolls onto his side and wraps an arm around her, bringing her in closer.

 

"Do you want me to leave?" 

 

Sadly no.

 

 _"No."_ she mutters out ashamed because falling for Dan Egan again wasn't something to be exactly proud of.

 

That's not to say it's exactly difficult to sleep with Dan, as long as he found you somewhat attractive and you have something to offer him professionally then there was an 85% chance that you would somehow end up with Dan Egan in bed. It's not like she was greatly ashamed with herself about the whole ordeal of them hooking up more than once. 

 

She doesn't know why but she can tell that he likes her just as much as she likes him. She's heard...stories from other women about his whole ritual of getting women out of his apartment before they could put up a fight and she doesn't want to toot her own horn but, she's never experienced that before and that's a strong indicator.

 

"You want me to stay?" he mumbles against her bare shoulder, vibrating her skin with life and his warmness.

 

"Maybe I do." she shrugs her shoulders, trying to not make it seem like it's a big deal as she internally dances on in the inside. 

 

He sighs at that and rolls over to the opposing side to grab his cellphone and pinches the bridge of his nose. 

 

"Alright then, you can move in tomorrow." 

 

And that's what gets her attention. Not his irresistible semi-naked body, not his high sexual appetite over even that goddamn smirk that makes her wet at the palm of his hand but, the idea of her actually moving in with him.

 

They weren't a couple? Does she suppose that they were friends? Well, Dan had a few friends and none were actually female so, were they actually friends?

"Excuse me?" her eyebrows arch at him as she sits up underneath the covers and gives him a look like he's well past crazy, "Have you lost your mind?"

 

He blinks at her dumbfounded, "No." 

 

She scoffs and runs a hand through her hair, "You want _me_ to move in with you?" she inquires for clarification which only leads to Dan nodding and taking her hand in his. 

 

"Yes." 

 

She doesn't get why, she honestly doesn't. Wasn't he like a man-whore supreme? What could he possibly gain from dating her? Sure, she was getting more and more jobs here and there for lobbying but it's not like she had the balls of DC in the palm of her hands. 

 

"Why?" she looks him in the eyes for answers, "You're a bachelor and everything that I'm not looking for, no offense." 

 

"Oh, Amy." he snorts with laughter, "Sweet, innocent, adorable Amy." he drops his phone in his lap and turns to face her head on.

 

"I think I'm exactly what you're looking for." 

 

"Is that so?" she challenges with a teasing smile.

 

"I don't know about you but, all of this sleeping around gets boring after a while. Especially since I'm not exactly getting anything in return from the chicks I'm doing it with." he begins to zone out in the middle of his rant. 

 

 _"Okay..?"_ Amy's confused, not really knowing how this has any relevance to his indication of her moving in with him.

 

He looks over at her and throws an arm around her waist, "But I'd rather sleep with you and get nothing out of it rather than sleeping with a bunch of whores and get something out of it.".

 

Ah, only Dan Egan could spin a totally romantic moment into something else. 

 

She still laughs, feeling a sense of warmness running beating through her heart. 

 

"That's _almost,_ sweet." she strokes his hand gently, "What's next, a wedding?"

 

She doesn't stop him from leaning in and placing a chaste kiss on her lips that exudes a future and hope-something she's never experienced before. 

 

"Pick a date and we'll go to City Hall." he licks his lips as he pulls away from her lips. 

 

God, know she knew he was just fucking with her. 

 

"Shut the fuck up, Dan." 

 

He settles himself back against the pillow and crooks a finger at her,

 

"Make me." 

 

And so, she does. 

 

* * *

 

 

"John! Do you think you can run and go get me a cocktail from the bar down the street, this week has been simply hectic from start to finish." Amy orders as she rubs her temples and passes the threshold of her front door the minute she arrives home. 

 

The girl trudge in front of her with exhaustion taking over their bodies.

 

John runs out to the living room with panic on his face and an eerily calm voice that's enough to let Amy know that something has happened in the past few hours.

 

"Ma'am, I've been meaning to-"

 

"Save it, John." Amy puts a hand up and throws herself on the opposing couch as the girls take over the couch on the other side of the room, "My tolerance level of negative right about now and all I need is alcohol right about now." she squeezes her hands into a fist as she speaks. 

 

John sighs and looks over his shoulder, expectantly like he's waiting for a grand ass gesture to sweep into the room and it aggravates her to the core. 

 

"John. Can you please just go get the goddamn drink," she demands furiously, sinking into the comfortable chair. 

 

"Fine." he agrees dutifully and grabs his wallet and breezes past the couches and makes his way out of the house with a soft close of the door. 

 

She closes her eyes to just get a second of relaxation-where the world doesn't ask for anything just for a brief second. 

 

"Mom?" she hears Cassidy's voice.

 

She groans and holds a hand up to the girls, "Cassie. I beg I need five minutes, okay?" 

 

She hears a few footsteps on the soft carpeting and from the steps, she can tell that the person has shoes on and that's what sets her the fuck off. All Amelia's life,s she had stressed the importance of not wearing shoes on the white carpet because of how easily it stains and is in no good mood to deal with trying to figure out how to remove a stain from the expensive ass carpet. 

 

"Amelia Kellie." her head jolts from the headrest, "How many times have I told you to not-"

 

And Dan's standing there. 

 

Fucking Dan Egan is standing right there, in front of her, looking like a goddamn mess if she's ever seen one. 

 

There's nothing else to do but let her jaw drop open and her eyes rake over him, questioning the ability of him even getting to the point of getting to San Fransisco before she did standing in her very living room right now.

 

"What the fuck are you doing here?" she breathes out in disbelief as she stands from the couch and blinks a few times to make sure he's there. 

 

He takes a deep breath and combs a hand through his hair.

 

"Did you really think I'd let you leave again?" he plunges his hands in his coat pocket which has a weird effect on Amy's knees. 

 

She tries to stay strong.

 

She tries so fucking hard to stay strong but, the way he stares at her..like she's the only woman in the world, she forgot how much she missed being looked at like that, especially by him.

 

"Does _Victoria_ know you're here?" she gives him a pointed look, trying to distance herself from him but he refuses it. 

 

"I broke up with her." 

 

And that might be the best news she's heard all fucking day, especially after this bat-shit crazy weekend thanks to Victoria's bony ass ruining just about everything in plain sight. 

 

"Glad to know you came to your senses." she tries to play off her gratitude with crossed arms and an unimpressed glare. 

 

Then she suddenly remembers the girls are right there, listening to this conversation. She figures she could use them as an out of this conversation.

 

"Girls. Let's go get ready for bed." she turns her attention back to the kids who stare at both of their parents in great disbelief and undeniable shock.

 

The girls get up to move but Dan's strong voice orders them to sit back down. 

 

"What do you want, Dan?" Amy shakes her head at him, "You came all this way to let me know that you broke up with Victoria? An e-mail would've been sufficient." 

 

Dan plunges his hands in his pocket and produces a mocha brown teddy bear and holds it in the air.

 

"Charlie!" Cassidy's face gleams into a bright smile as she jumps from the couch and crosses over to join her father at the center of the living room, "I thought I lost him." she takes the bear in her arms and holds on to it for dear life. 

 

He plunges into his pocket again and produces two sterling silver earrings with an 'A' charm on one and 'C' charm on the other, holding it out the girls. 

 

"You forgot these too." he offers and the girls both share a knowing look as they collect the thin pieces of jewelry from their father, leaving Amy to feel like a fucking idiot on the other side of the room.

 

Her eyes look at the girls who look extremely content with their missing pieces finally being returned to them and for the first time in a while, both of her girls are bright and beaming the way she's dreamed her whole life.

 

All because of Dan and his fucking tricks. 

 

"Do you have something for Mom?" Amelia speaks up as she helps Cassidy put on her necklace from around her neck. 

 

Dan's eyes look up and meet Amy's and he gives her a knowing look.

 

"Mommy doesn't want a gift." she takes a few steps back but being who he is, Dan takes a few steps forward and plunges his hands back into his pocket.

 

He produces her cell phone-the one she swore she had in her bag earlier but couldn't for the life of her find it.

 

"Would Mommy want her cell phone back?" he tries and she feels her neck prickle in sweat and her face flushes in blush.

 

She bites on her bottom lip and tucks a strand of her hair behind her ear nervously-not knowing what to do with her hands. 

 

She looks at her phone in his hand and in a weird way, it all makes sense. 

 

They both move fast, that's how they are, that's who they are but, sometimes they move so fucking fast that they forget things and that's why they had each other all those years ago..to pick things up for one another.

 

"Why are you doing this?" she looks at him pointedly as he approaches her with his eyes locked on her like they're the only two people in the whole world. 

 

Dan sighs and takes a look at the girls who stare right back at him with big eyes and back to Amy.

 

"The last time you left, I didn't come after you. Which is probably why I spent all those years trying to find a replacement to fill in that whole you left but, I'm not doing that to us again. I'm not letting you leave without a fight this time." his voice croaks in the middle and goddamnit she hates him and his stupid emotions now more than ever for making her feel for him. 

 

She sighs as her chest raises up and down in shock.

 

"I love you, Amy. And I'm not leaving until you know that." he declares strongly with his eyes locked on hers.

 

She doesn't know why but she laughs at that. Not at him but one of those ugly cry-girly laugh things she can't stand for the life of herself. 

 

It only happens because she knows he's right. 

 

She knows that he's out here because he wants to and not because he has to. He could've easily have taken the necklaces, the stuffed animal and Amy's phone and burned it without a care in the world (she knows she would've) but he didn't.

 

The tears begin to sting in her eyes as she looks away from him and at her girls who wait hand and foot for their next move. 

 

She knows what she wants to do but, she has a feeling that minute she does it. Then he'll just laugh in her face in response and turn around to go fucking whoever he pleases wherever.

 

But, he surprises the hell out of her and pulls her body in for a passionate kiss. 

 

The way their lips move together reminds her of the first time they ever kissed. In the hallway of the NEOB building all those years ago after Amy successfully managed to convince a Republican candidate to vote blue for the sake of an abortion bill to be overruled. 

 

It feels like their lips are dancing together for a lifetime and she wouldn't hate it if that's how long this kissed lasted.

 

It's not until the girls crash into their legs that they're reminded that they're not alone.

 

And she's not mad about it.

 

Her, Dan and their girls all home.

 

The way it's supposed to be. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Many of you have been wondering what my next Dan/Amy story will be and..I'm here to announce that it'll be posted soon!
> 
> Thanks for sticking it out to this final chapter!
> 
> I love you all so, so much!

**Author's Note:**

> Make sure to leave a comment and or kudos, I'd love to know what you think so far and all feedback is greatly appreciated!


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